New Dawn
by Naf1a7Ate9
Summary: Sky is imprisoned in the End, while his friends are suffering. Ty has been fused with the mind of a dragon and press-ganged into Herobrine's army. Ember wrestles with her broken past and twisted plans for the future. And Seto has an explosive little secret. The sequel to Midnight, with Skydoesminecraft, Deadlox, MinecraftUniverse, Setosorcerer, & much of Team Crafted. Read & enjoy!
1. Fear (Ty)

**Heya dudes! This is a sequel to a sequel to a little story I wrote that found a bit of popularity, and probably the last book in this series. It's the sequel to Midnight, which is after Sunset. I (really, really, really) suggest you read those first, you can find them through my profile!  
><strong>

* * *

><p>"What is that?" Ty gasped, staring at the black, slightly glowing stone.<p>

"As you may know, the End is a plane of existence not tied to the moral forces of evil or good. It is a neutral plane, representing fear. This crystal is taken from the very heart of this plane's crust. If you touch it, you will enter a nightmare formed from your darkest emotions. All your fears, all your insecurities, all your jealousies, your hatreds, all the things you wish to hide will be revealed," Ember explained. "To surmise, this is fear itself."

Oh. That sounded absolutely wonderful. But it still didn't answer the question of why he was here. They'd said something about a test… "What test were you talking about? And I'm not touching that thing."

The girls exchanged meaningful looks. "Tough luck, dude, that's the test. You touch it, you go through the worst experience of your life, and you come out. Well, maybe you come out. You could die in the trance," Rose said cheerfully.

"I could… die? No way. I don't even need to take this test."

"That's true," Aradyn remarked coolly, though she sounded slightly disappointed. "There's a portal behind you. You can just walk through it."

"Of course, the portal leads to certain death," Ember added, crushing the spark of hope that had been clinging tenaciously to life all this time. "You'll be teleported to a random location in the End. Even if it doesn't drop you into the Void, you're too young to fend for yourself. You'd be eaten by a wild dragon or starve or freeze to death."

Ty stared at them. "Why the hell do I even need to take this test?"

"To prove that you are worthy to serve a god."

"What if I don't choose either and just sit here?"

"This place only forms at the new moon. You'd die when it dispels."

"You're bluffing," Ty muttered, glaring at Ember.

Rose smirked. "Care to find out?"

He swallowed hard. There was only one possible way out of this. "Em, please let me out of here. We agreed to stop trying to kill each other. Please, please, _please_."

She looked him in the eye for the first time. "Ty. I swear that I'm not trying to kill you."

_Well, it doesn't exactly seem that way at the moment… _"Can't we just all agree that I took the test and tell Herobrine that?"

"No," came the answering chorus.

"I'm not going to do it," he said flatly. "I won't touch that thing. I'm going to get out of this cage, and out of here."

"It's impossible," Ember informed him.

"How would you know?" Ty shot back.

"Because I tried. We all did. Everyone does."

The words left him cold. "E-everyone? You mean… m-more than you guys? People have d-died?" His panic was growing by the moment.

"Yep."

"How many people have ever passed this, out of how many?" Ty asked, horrorstruck. Life was going from bad to worse to a freaking nightmare.

"Well, the four of us, and then Seto, all passed," Wisp said. "I think… it was like eight people who didn't make it, right?"

"Well, there was Zach, and Ashlynn, and Camille… I think the other guy was Jackson, right?"

"Yeah, it was. Zach, Ash, Cam, Jackson… Then there was Sasha. She got really close," Aradyn commentated.

"She did," Ember agreed, sounding slightly subdued. "I wish she'd passed."

"I'm glad Aaron didn't even try. He was such a jerk."

"I know, right?" Wisp sighed.

"He was as bad as Jacqueline. Damn, that girl was a _bitch_," Rose groaned.

"Total bitch," Aradyn said, nodding. "Then there was Heath. That was sad. I'd thought he'd make it."

"Me too. He was just like you, Ty, except maybe a bit nicer," Rose told him. She wrinkled her nose distastefully after a moment. "And way hotter."

Ty was too busy panicking to be offended. Eight. Eight people had died doing what it seemed he had no choice but to do. Well, only seven, since Aaron had apparently taken the portal. The clearly fatal portal. "Is there anything else I c-could d-do instead?"

"No, you idiot."

"Rose!" Wisp called reproachfully. "He's plainly terrified. Ty isn't probably capable of using much of his brain at this point."

"That makes it sound like at some point he was," she retorted.

Ty tried to tune out their bickering as Ember caught his attention with a meaningful flick of her head. "What?" he hissed.

"Come here," she whispered.

He was about to say no when a little voice in the back of his head stopped him.

Literally, a little voice in his head.

**_You need to listen to her._**

_She's trying to trick me!_

**_SHE IS NOT._**

_Yeah, right._ Ty winced as Eguire growled loudly in his head.

**_Talk to her, you goober._**

_'Goober?'_

**_Idiot, if that's what you prefer._**

_Fine._ Ty reluctantly approached Ember, wrapping his hands around the bars and trying to suppress the instinct to run in screaming circles around the cell, throwing himself at the walls. "What do you want, except to see me suffer and die?"

"Ty… you couldn't be more wrong. I don't want you to be hurt."

"Then please, _let me go_," he begged, catching her hand and clasping it in his own like a lifeline.

"I… I can't. Listen, when you finish the simulation—

"_If_ I _survive_ the simulation," Ty corrected her.

"When you finish the simulation, because you will, I know it, you'll know more about yourself than ever before."

"Great. I'll be dead, but understand myself better than ever, because there'll be nothing left to understand!"

"I have no choice but to make you do this. If I let you go now, then there'd be hell to pay. Herobrine would kill you, Ty, torture you slowly to the edge of death and bring you back, again and again until you lose the will to survive. He might even get me to do it."

"And you care why?"

"I—" She looked around, as though hoping an answer would appear. "I don't know. But I do know that you have to take this test. It's your only chance to survive."

He stared at Ember, his stomach churning, his heart pounding. Dimly he was conscious that Rose and Wisp had abandoned their argument and were staring at him intently. Ty was certain that he wouldn't live to regret this, but what choice did he have? "I'll do it," he whispered. Ember squeezed and released his hand, picking the stone off of the pedestal with a cloth and offering it to him.

"Good luck," she breathed, and he reached out before his nerve failed him and touched the stone.

There was a flash of purple light, and as it faded, Ty looked fearfully around the room.

Nothing had changed.

* * *

><p><strong>Well... what just happened? Stuff did! Or maybe it didn't, as the case may be. Y'all just have to wait until the next chapter!<strong>

* * *

><p><strong><span>Ty:<span>**** But I don't want to wait. I hate being in cliffhangers!**

**Me:**** Yeah, well, ha.**

**Sky:**** WHERE AM I IN THIS STORY?!**

**Me:**** Shaddup. You just have to wait.**

**Both:**** But we don't wanna wait!**

**Wisp:**** Hey guys! I heard there was an A/N! I brought soup!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Lose Yourself" by Eminem. <strong>**_His palms are sweaty/Knees weak, arms are heavy..._**** That works.**


	2. Breaking (Ty)

"Well… when does the simulation start?" Ty asked Ember.

Her purple eyes flashed angrily. "It should have begun immediately. What did you do?"

"I—I touched the stone, like you said."

"He must have meddled with it," Rose snarled, her teeth showing. "That is against the rules, _idiot_. We will have to do this the hard way."

"Yes, we will," Ember hissed. She pressed her hand to the bars and they melted in a purple flare. "Follow me, Ty."

"Wh-what? Em, what's the hard way?"

"Are you defying me?" she snapped, wheeling around and glaring at him. "Aradyn, Rose, knock some respect into him, please."

"With pleasure," Rose purred. Before Ty could think to react, Aradyn had grabbed his arms and thrown him to the ground. Her knee came smashing into his chest, knocking the breath out of him. Ty struggled to pull away as Rose punched him hard in the gut. He cried out sharply, lashing out with his wings and clipping Aradyn on the jaw.

Her blue blood spattered the ground, and she gasped. "Ember!"

By now Ty had torn his way free and had pressed his back against the wall, shocked by the sudden assault. "Em, please listen to me. I didn't do anything. I swear I didn't. I don't want to fight." He knew he couldn't fight the four of them. It would have been suicide.

Ember sneered at him. "Your words mean nothing." Suddenly her hands were on his arms and she'd flung him against the opposite wall. The back of his neck grew warm and wet. Blood. He was bleeding from the tear in the skin at the base of his skull. "Take him to the chamber."Aradyn and Rose each grabbed one of their struggling prisoner's arms and frog-marched him down a narrow hallway, Ember leading them, with Wispice trailing behind.

A door was thrown open, and Ty was pushed into a tiny room. When the door slammed shut, it became a tiny, extremely dark room. He brushed his hands along its steel sides. They were less than two feet apart, and he could barely stand up.

His heart began to pound, terrified, desperate, throwing itself against his chest. Ty let out a choked whimper. This was horrible. He wasn't safe; he knew that much, and he was also locked in a small box. Things could hardly get worse.

But yet, they did. There was a loud scraping noise, and Ty stumbled as the walls lurched closer, inching together like a boot towards an ant.

He braced his arms against the walls, pressing his back on one and his feet on the other. The strain on his muscles was incredible, like trying to hold up the world. And in a way, he was trying to hold the world, hold together the tiny little cubicle that was his personal, dark little world. He felt tendons pop, the very sinew of his flesh tearing itself apart to try to keep him from being smashed.

It was a losing battle. The walls didn't get tired, they didn't tremble in exhaustion, sweat in numb terror of the inexorable. It _was_ inexorable, that he would fail and that the walls would come crashing in around him. And eventually they did. Ty sobbed aloud as he had to release his hold on the walls, letting them slide forward and pin him upright. He could barely draw enough of the stale air to pass for breath as the compaction slowly increased around his rigid, frozen body.

How could this be happening? He didn't want to die like this. Ty gasped for air, still straining feebly against the pressure. There was no use. He knew it, but kept fighting until he couldn't fight any longer.

Ty let out his last breath. He'd been in the steel vise for at least fifteen minutes. "Em, please," he begged to the darkness. There was no reaction, as he'd expected. As he went completely limp, the steel walls pressed in even tighter. Something cracked in his body, and he screamed out in sudden pain. "I give up! Just kill me, fast!"

"You really think you would be so privileged?" Ember teased from somewhere on the other side of one of the walls. The pressure dissipated, and he gasped, falling to the floor. "We shall do that again. It amused me."

He couldn't respond to her cruel laughter. It was one of his ribs that had snapped, and every breath sent pain lancing through his side, like someone was dancing rodeo horses all over his chest. The walls slid forward again, and this time he didn't fight, just let himself be crushed. It would be all over soon.

In a way, the pressure and darkness were almost soothing. It meant that the end of this suffering was near. And the tight space meant that there could be nothing worse than the tight space near him. Ty made his racing heart slow and forced himself to relax. Death would take him soon, and he would be away from this horrible place.

"You know, Ty, that it will only be worse once you die," Ember said matter-of-factly. The walls loosened their grip, and the floor gave way, dumping his bruised and battered body onto the floor of a lower-level room. He buried his face into the ground and tried to suppress the urge to do something really stupid like start bawling his eyes out.

"Why, you may wonder?" she continued. "Because you will be sent to the Nether. You are damned. Your very soul is tainted. You are part dragon, and Notch will not show you mercy but condemn you as a servant of Herobrine and cast you away from the Aether."

Her footsteps drew nearer, and a firm kick was delivered into his side, flipping him over so that he had to stare up at Ember. "Pathetic. You were a pitiful excuse for a human being, and are even worse as a hybrid. It is no wonder that no one loves you. That no one cares." Her voice changed, it became taunting, sing-song-y. "It is no wonder that you are _all alone_."

"Y-you're wrong," Ty tried to snarl, but it came out as more of a weak moan. Everything she was saying was true enough to cut him like a whip. He _was_ all alone. No one cared about him, anyway. And as for love? Who had ever loved him? "You're l-lying."

"You do not believe that. But in case you need proof that I am telling the truth, I have some." She yanked him to his feet, and Ty gasped as pain shot through his broken rib. The horses were back for a grand finale, it seemed. "What, you are hurt? I do not care. No one does." Ember struck his face hard. "Cry out. It hurts, does it not? I want you to scream."

Her foot came crashing down on the instep of his, and he bit his lip, tears coming to his eyes as he stumbled. Ty wouldn't give her the satisfaction of hearing him begging, though. "I w-won't," he promised himself aloud.

"You will," she said confidently. "One day you will plead with me, be on the ground begging, and you can do nothing to change that fate. But for now, you must scream."

And he did, when she smashed her fist into his chest so hard that another rib broke. Ty pulled away from her, his wings whipping out as he wildly searched for an exit. But there was none.

**_She doesn't smell right_****, **Eguire said quietly.

_Eg, that's the least of our worries! We need to get out of here._

**_I was just saying…_**

Ember watched his terror with amusement, her purple eyes a colder color than he'd ever seen. Ty tried to ignore her almost predatory gaze as he collapsed helplessly against the wall, finally submitting to his exhaustion. "Ember, why… why are you so mad at me?"

"Because you are useless. You are pathetic. I do not care about you and never did. Anything kind I ever did for you was an act. I could not possibly care about such a weakling as you. I hate you. I am not mad at you so much as wishing to rid the world of the waste of life and oxygen that is you. But I cannot do that yet." She stepped closer, her wings huge, fanning out and trapping him against the wall.

He'd never noticed how haughty she looked, terribly beautiful in a way that made him feel even more insignificant than she told him he was. Ember curled her lip back as she stared at him, seeming to see every single one of his flaws. And Ty knew he was flawed. "I… I'm sorry for whatever I did," he started.

"Silence." She glared at him. "You will come with me. Herobrine calls."

And Ty felt his entire body go limp with dread. _Why me?_

* * *

><p><strong>EMBER POV:<strong>

* * *

><p>Ty was bleeding, and his body was spasming wildly as something invisible struck him. "It's okay, Ty," Ember soothed, even though she knew he couldn't hear her. "Hang in there."<p>

"No, don't. I have housecleaning duty on the line," Rose muttered.

There was a horrible crunching noise, and something snapped inside Ty's chest. Ember bit back a cry of horror. Holy Herobrine. What was happening to him in the simulation?

* * *

><p><strong>Oh... so Ty was in the simulation? Poor dude, he doesn't even know that that stuff isn't real. #SoEvil<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: 'Just a Dream' by the amazing Carrie Underwood... <strong>**_This can't be happening to me/This is just a dream_****...**


	3. A Dream With No End (Ty & Ember)

Ember slammed open the door at the end of the hallway she'd just dragged Ty down. Herobrine raised an eyebrow approvingly at Ember as she flung her prisoner to the ground at the god's feet. "He has failed," she said shortly.

Ty struggled to rise. He'd bit his lip when he'd fallen, and now blood was filling his mouth, choking him. He coughed, his arms slipping out from under him. Ember placed her foot on his back, holding him down.

"Delightful," Herobrine murmured. "Hold him still for me."

"Of course." She knelt down beside Ty, catching his arms and holding them behind his back.

"You know," Herobrine started, "there is no real reason for him to have wings."

Ty gasped involuntarily, trying to pull out from under Ember's foot. "No reason at all," Ember agreed.

There was a hiss of metal against leather as Herobrine drew a knife out of its scabbard. Ty flinched as the cold steel touched the base of his wing. "Exactly," the god smiled, increasing the pressure until Ty's blood sprayed over the blade.

Ember increased the tightness of her hold as Ty thrashed, trying to pull away. He couldn't let this happen to him. He couldn't. This _wouldn't_ happen to him. He swung his foot around, managing to hit Ember in the back of the knee. She hissed, and he growled back, pulling his wing out of Herobrine's hold and smashing it into her jaw.

She fell with a shriek of pain. Ty shrugged out of her grasp and whipped his wings out. "Stay. Away. From. Me," he snarled at them both. There had to be a way out of here.

The ceiling! The ceiling was made out of glass, and he'd be able to break his way through it. Ty steeled himself, and then jumped, his hands over his face so as to catch the worst of the impact and the subsequent rain of glass.

The ceiling shattered, and Ty yelped in pain as the millions of tiny shards scored their tracks down his arms and neck and face and over his wings and pretty much everywhere. The blood coursed over his body in what felt like gallons, gallons and gallons of blood pouring down every inch of exposed skin.

But… that wasn't what was making him wet. It couldn't have been blood, because there wasn't that much in his body.

Oh. The ceiling had been holding back an… what seemed to be an ocean. How was that here in the End? That didn't matter, though. What mattered was that he was at the bottom of an ocean, and couldn't even see were the water's surface was. The pressure was making his ears ring, and he felt his wings dragging him down. Ty thrashed, trying to close his wings.

There was too much water, and he was almost out of air. He was going to drown here, here in the depths of an ocean that shouldn't exist. Ty struggled harder, succeeding only in rising a few feet and using almost all of his remaining oxygen.

_No. This can't happen. This can't. This can't. I'm not going to drown…_ But he couldn't fight the impulse forever. Ty took a big gulp of seawater, and almost choked, breathing more and more in.

_This can't happen. This can't… this… can't… this… is… not… h-happening… _

* * *

><p><strong>EMBER<strong>

* * *

><p>Ember gasped as cuts appeared all across Ty. "What's happening, do you guys think?" she asked worriedly.<p>

"I don't know. I mean, what sort of fears does he have?"

"He hates the dark, and confinement, and isn't so good about heights," Ember recited, staring at the prone form of the green-winged boy. "Then he's super protective of his friends."

"Maybe he was breaking out of something," Wispice suggested.

"Probably," Ember agreed.

Just then, Ty began to twitch, his lips turning paler and paler by the second. His arms clawed at the air feebly. Well, only one did; the other was frozen to the stone, as it would be for as long as the simulation lasted. "What now?" Aradyn asked anxiously.

"He's underwater, I bet," Ember said. That had been one of her fears. She'd had to get out of an ocean. Of course, swimming was no use; wings were too heavy to make it an option. You had to spread your arms, relax, and float, or you'd never reach the surface.

All the tasks in the simulations were doable, but the tricks to complete them were counterintuitive. You'd want to try to swim if you were drowning, but it couldn't save you when you were in your trance. It was the fear of the inevitable that led to a fear of drowning. Ember understood this now, after having gone through her simulation. You had to make yourself surrender to the inevitable to beat those fears. It was terrifying, obviously, but that was the whole point: learning to control your fears.

But Ty didn't seem to exactly know how to do that. He kept thrashing, his wings whipping around wildly like two hurricanes. And then he started choking.

She knew without a doubt then that he was in an ocean, because the bigger the breaths he took, the more he gasped and sputtered. Ember could only watch in horror as his body relaxed slowly into a deathlike stupor. "No, Ty," she ordered. "You can't give up. Don't die on me. You can't die on me."

"He's out," Rose said. "I knew it."

Ember sank back onto her heels, crouching beside him. There had to be a way. She let her hand glide down to his wrist, feeling the weak pulse there. So he was still alive. But… But then it was gone. His heart had stopped. He… he was dead.

"No," she whispered. This wasn't how it worked. She wouldn't, _couldn't _stand to see someone else die in the simulation.

"It's over, Em," Aradyn sighed, putting her hand on Ember's shoulder. "Come on, guys, we need to go."

"You're on housecleaning duty, Ara!" Rose called gleefully. "Let's make some popcorn!" Ty's death hadn't fazed her at all, it seemed.

The other girls slowly filed out of the room. Wispice hesitated at the door. "Are you coming, Ember?"

"I… yeah, just give me a minute." She couldn't stop staring at Ty. He'd trusted her enough to do this. And now he was dead. It was all her fault.

All.

Her.

Fault.

"Okay. Well… see you in a minute, Ember," Wisp said, scampering after Rose and Aradyn.

There had to be a way. She had to find a way to save him, bring him back somehow.

And then an idea came to her.

**_No way._**

_Yes. Zariah, it's the only chance he has._

**_You're hitting a new level of stupidity with this one, and I thought that that was impossible._**

_Thank you for your feedback._ Ember took a deep breath. She was going to need the air.

And then she slapped her hand down on the stone, sending herself into Ty's fear simulation.

* * *

><p><strong>Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's... EMBER TO THE RESCUE!?<strong>

**Thank you guys for all the reviews; it literally makes me want to run around screaming. I'm as light as a feather, I'm as giddy as a bird, I'm quoting... Charles Dickens, I think. And I would be running around screaming, if I didn't have a terrible cold. Yay. I hate flu vaccinations; I always have a stuffy nose for at least a week. But seriously though, THANK YOU!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Maps" by Maroon 5<strong>


	4. Die (Ty & Ember)

It was like falling asleep. The dying. At first Ty had tried to fight the fog that enfolded his brain, fight the shadowy fingers that wanted to drag him down, away to death, but then he realized how much easier it would be to just let go.

And so he did, feeling himself fade away into nothing. His identity felt blurry. Who was Ty? It didn't seem to matter anymore, and he laughed at the strange thought that he had ever been someone or something. Ty was a nothing, a cosmic nobody. There was no point in trying to stay awake anymore, so he let his eyes drift shut and let himself fall asleep.

But then he was choking, and his eyes snapped open at the sudden return of the pain. His wounds—_his _wounds? He wasn't anyone… No, that wasn't right. He was a Someone, and the name of that Someone was Ty.

Ty coughed violently, rolling over and feeling water pour out of his lungs, along with whatever else he had eaten. He retched until there was nothing left in his stomach and lungs, and then kept coughing for a while longer. Then he lay back, exhausted and aching all over.

"Hey, Ty. Are you okay?"

That voice… Ember! He gasped and pulled away, terrified. A hissing noise was coming from somewhere, and he realized that it was him. Ty's lips were pulled back as he bared his teeth at her. "Stay away from me!"

Ember raised her hands. She was dripping wet, he noticed somewhat dimly. "Ty," she began, "I don't know what's happened to you, but it seems like I've done something to you. What's been going on?"

How could she pretend ignorance like this? "You attacked me. You made Rose and Aradyn beat me up, and then threw me into a _box_." He shuddered, remembering. "You made the sides move in. I begged you to stop, but you didn't, and you let the sides crush me. One of my ribs is broken, I think."

She stared at him. "What?"

"I'm not finished yet. You let me out and kept hurting me. You told me I was going to the Nether for being evil. And you told me I was worthless and pathetic. And… that… that you never had ever done anything for me out of kindness and that you hated me for being a waste of life! Then you held me down while Herobrine tried to cut off my wings!"

Ember's mouth was hanging open. "Ty… so one of your biggest fears is… me? And rejection, by… me?"

Now it was his turn to stare. "What do you mean?"

She muttered a curse. "It seems I have an evil doppelganger. You're in the simulation, and you didn't know?"

He was in… in the simulation? No. That didn't make any sense. "You're lying. How is it so real? And how are you here? And why aren't you trying to hurt me, like you've been ever since I messed up the stone?"

"It's so real because your mind makes it real. And you didn't mess up the stone. Your body has been lying on the floor of the room for almost an hour. It's only your mind that's here."

"But… how did you get here?" This was all the simulation? How could it be? It couldn't be.

**_It is. I tried to tell you._**

_You did? When?_

**_When I said Ember didn't smell right. She does now._**

_WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?_

**_Because I didn't know how!_**

Ty mentally swatted the dragon.

**_I'm sorry…_**

_Ugh. It's okay. You're forgiven. But you're also officially a Grade-A idiot now._

"I joined your simulation. I didn't know if it would work, but you were drowning. I couldn't… I couldn't let you die."

"I did die, though," Ty said. "Everything was all fuzzy and grey and soft… I was dead."

"I know, but… I brought you back." Now she wasn't looking at him, and there was a light blush brightening her pale cheekbones.

"How?"

"What, is this a hospital seminar?"

He stared at her, and as the answer came to him, he blushed, too. "You used mouth-to-mouth, didn't you?"

"It was the only way," she said, looking at her feet.

Ty nodded and hauled himself into a standing position. "No big deal. So… how do I get out of here?"

"It's different for everyone. Rose says she had to kiss a dude to get out. Aradyn decided to stop fighting with her dragon, and that triggered her release. Wispice didn't tell me what happened, but I think she had to kill someone."

"And you? What did you do?"

She stiffened. "I'm not going to talk about that." There was a moment of silence. Ty wondered what he'd have to do to get out. "So… what are your fears?"

"Why do you ask?"

"If we know, then we can prepare a bit more."

"Umm… the dark," Ty started, embarrassed. What would she think of him? "Tight spaces. People trying to hold me back. Dying, but I think everyone's afraid of that. And… yeah, that's it."

"Oh, really? You have a lot more than those fears, Ty. Everyone does. Those are the ones that you aren't too shy to admit."

"Then you tell me yours!" he challenged.

"Fine. I'm scared of spiders. I'm scared of being tied up. Chains, ropes, cages, handcuffs, gags, blindfolds… All of those sorts of things. I hate water. I hate watching the people I care about being hurt, especially if it's my fault. I'm scared of losing control of Zariah. Those are just a few of my fears. I could go on for hours. But now you have to tell me your fears. And be honest."

"Well, now that you mention it, I don't like spiders either. And I'm really nervous around… around girls. And I'm scared of being trapped here in the End. I worry that people will think that I'm weird. I'm worried that people will…" _Will think that I'm crazy for having cut myself._

"That people will…? That they'll what?"

"Nothing."

"Okay. Well, most of your fears stem from being judged or being helpless. That's what you're _really_ scared of. If you come up with strategies for dealing with those two, you'll be better able to handle almost all your fears."

"What about you?"

"This is about you, Ty, not me. I don't think I'll be facing my fears, just yours."

"But I should be prepared for your fears."

"No, you shouldn't." With that she turned away. "Let's go find evil me and teach that wannabe bitch a lesson." Ty followed Ember across the windswept End landscape, still feeling slightly dazed.

* * *

><p><strong>EMBER POV<strong>

* * *

><p>Ember cast a glance at Ty curiously. So one of his worst fears was… her? That didn't make sense.<p>

**_It's me. I'm terrifying._**

_Don't I know it._

Ty glanced up at her, his green eyes guarded. He looked exhausted, and every step he took he staggered slightly on. Oh well. He _had_ died, after all. "What?" he said stiffly.

"You look like a zombie."

"Maybe I am." He raised his arms and lurched forward a few steps. "I'm back from the dead, aren't I?"

She started to laugh, but it caught and died in her throat. There he was.

Him.

"Seth!" she shouted, running forward. Her ten-year-old brother raised his head.

"Emma." He was able to talk clearly! This was amazing; he was back and healthy.

"Where have you been?" she scolded, pulling him into an embrace. He didn't hug her back.

"Dead, all these years," he spat, his young face twisted with rage. Seth pushed her away. "Dead, because of you! You let me die, you let them kill me!"

"Seth… I… I tried to… to help you… I tried to… I couldn't," Ember stammered, staring down at her younger brother. He looked exactly as she remembered.

"You could have saved me!"

"Ember, what's going on?" Ty asked, staring from her to the small, outraged boy next to her.

"Emma killed me," Seth said coldly.

"I did not!" Ember cried. He didn't know what he was talking about… but she had as good as killed him by not saving him. She should have stayed home that day, taken care of him.

"Emma? Ember? Is that your name?" Ty said, staring at her. "You killed this kid?"

"Yes," Seth said, at the exact same time Ember said, "No."

"He's my brother, Ty! I wouldn't kill him!"

"She never told you how her family died, did she? She killed us all. Poisoned us. She left us for Herobrine, and never looked back," Seth said, suddenly horribly sad.

"Ember? You… killed him?" he stammered.

"Seth! I couldn't save you from the fire!"

"That is what she says," Seth said, his attention now fully devoted to Ty. "She is lying. Emma murdered me, and she wants to kill you too."

"Emma?" Ty looked at her, as though someone had hit him over the head with a large chunk of wood. "You're… Emma?"

Ember ignored him, staring at Seth. "Seth, what are you talking about?"

"You know. How you left me for dead. How you came away with Herobrine and never spared a second thought for me."

Her breath caught in her throat as she remembered where she was. _This isn't Seth_, she reminded herself. _Seth wouldn't say this. Seth isn't even here._

"Em?" Ty said. "You… you murdered your _brother_? That's why you didn't tell me?"

She exhaled slowly. "You aren't my brother," she whispered, staring into the face that she missed so much. Seth's eyes were exactly like she remembered.

"Of course I am your brother! Or I would be, if you had not _let me die_!"

"You aren't my brother! Go away!"

"Emma," he pleaded, his face suddenly angelic and sad. "Please stop being so mad at me. I just… I wish I could have been there for you. I wish that I had had my life to live."

Ember tried to fight back the flood of tears that came to her eyes. "I know you do. I wish you did too. But I can't bring you back. I'll get revenge for you."

"You let me die!" he snarled. Hateful again.

"You aren't real. You don't bother me." Ember closed her eyes and tried to tune him out.

**_Think of something that makes you happy._**

_Why are you being helpful?_

**_Just go with it._**

Ember took a deep breath. There was one moment, when she'd been in the Overworld, with the sun shining around her, and the birds singing, and the air warm as she sat on the grassy ground, that she'd been more at peace than ever before. She tried to live in that moment, recalling the scents, the pleasant sensations of the grass tickling her arms, the amazing feeling of the sunlight on her wings as she rested, away from all the rest of the world. She'd never felt the sun on her wings before. There was no sun in the End, where she'd lived almost all of her life.

When she opened her eyes, reluctantly exiting the daydream, the nightmare-Seth was gone, and Ty was gaping at her. "You made him go away."

"I stopped being scared, at least for now."

"But you killed your own brother," he said, still staring at her.

"He lied about that."

"How can I be sure that _you're_ not lying? You didn't even tell me your real name."

"Ember is my real name now," she insisted. "And I was _six_, Ty. How could I kill my brother?"

"I don't know, Emma. You're sixteen now, and most people would say that's too young to be a kidnapper."

"I was on a _mission_, and I would never kill my brother, and Emma isn't my damn name anymore!"

"Okay. So you didn't kill your brother. But you still lied about your name. You're Emma, and you always have been. You can't ever really change who you are. You're always stuck." Did he feel... _betrayed_?

"That's not true. And anyway, I never tell _anyone_ about my first name."

Ty shook his head. "Whatever, Emma. I think I'll call you that from now on."

"Don't you dare," she growled.

"But I like it. Emma," he said again, rolling the name around, sounding it out. "It humanizes you."

She knew that he was goading her, but she couldn't help but rise to the bait. "Stop it. Just stop."

"Why?"

Ember hissed. "Because I said so."

"And that's a reason?" Ty laughed slightly as he caught up to her, and she glanced up at him. He was taller by almost three inches, which for some reason annoyed Ember.

"You're in a good mood," she muttered.

"Infuriating you is fun."

She turned away, walking faster so that he had to scurry a bit to catch up again. He wasn't supposed to have seen her past, her fears and memories. This wasn't fair.

"Emma? What's wrong?"

"Leave me alone."

"No. Because I need an explanation. You need to tell me everything, all your past and all of that. No more secrets, because I need to trust you." He was suddenly serious again. Serious Ty was even more aggravating than Annoying Ty, at least for right now.

"Some people trust me without knowing my past, you know."

"Yeah, well, I'm not 'some people,'" Ty said, grabbing her arm and spinning her around to face him. "So I need an explanation."

"I've never told anyone my past, and I'm not going to start now." Ember pulled away from him and jumped into the air, her wings beating steadily. There was a rustle behind her, and she looked down to see Ty chasing after her, every stroke of his wings seeming labored and painful. "Herobrine damn it, you idiot, you're going to fall! You're too injured to be flying!"

"Then come down here so I don't have to—ow—follow you!" Ty shouted at her. Ember roared in annoyance, and then she caught sight of a movement behind Ty. There was a figure holding a net, and she looked very familiar.

Ember dived down, folding her wings and extending her talons in preparation to tear apart her victim.

* * *

><p><strong>So... I suppose I should explain the extra long chapter. The fear simulation is probably going to take a while, and I don't want to use too many chapters. Also, there will most likely not be a sequel, so I have to completely resolve everything in less than forty chapters (I try not to make books too long, and anyway I need to start posting my new story). So... y'all should thank orchidlove123, because she and I decided to combine multiple chapters together. Updates will be slightly less frequent, but chapters will be longer. Yeah, that's all. I think.<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Big Girls Don't Cry" by Fergie. If you guys want a little hint about the plot, take a look at the lyrics. I PROMISE NOTHING, I WILL EXPLAIN NOTHING, AND Y'ALL CAN DEAL WITH IT. THERE.<strong>


	5. Crash Landing (Ty)

"Then come down here so I don't have to—ow—follow you!" Ty shouted at Ember. Not Ember. She was Emma, wasn't she?

**_She is who she wants to be._**

_Thank you, oh dear fount of wisdom._

**_Am I being subtly insulted?_**

_Yes. Yes you are._

**_Jerk._**

_That's not subtle._

**_Whatever, you panda butt. _**Ty sensed Eguire's satisfaction at apparently having won their battle of wits.

Ember suddenly dived down, almost as though she were trying to attack him. Shit. How mad had he made her? He didn't think he'd been _that_ annoying. Ty lunged out of the way. As he did so, he realized that he was falling towards the ground as his wings suddenly spiraled out of control. He cried out in fright as he fell, looking down at the ground in horror.

And he saw Ember standing there, holding a net. She wanted to trap him again, he realized in numb terror. But then…

Ember collided into Ember, and there was an ear-piercing yowl from one of the… two Embers? That meant one was a simulation, and one was real. But they were identical. Holy Notch. This was bad.

**_Don't get distracted! We're still in free fall!_**

Oh. Ty tried to spread his wings, but the cut at the joint of his left wing made it incredibly painful to move. He was going to crash land if he didn't manage to slow his fall, crash and probably break even more bones than those that were already broken.

He should have hit the ground by now, but instead of him hitting it, it seemed to be receding away, leaving falling, falling and falling from higher and higher heights. Ty's breath caught in his throat. This was awful. He might have survived a crash from the thirty or so feet he'd been up, but now it seemed that he'd been falling for at least a minute and there were still a hundred or so feet to go.

_It's just like falling in parkour_, he told himself. _Find a good landing site. _There was the ocean that he'd drowned in. He could land there, and it might be safer than on the stone. But he could end up dead again. Then there was everywhere else, a barren landscape of smooth, solid rock. Neither option was good, and anyway, he didn't want to land in water. So stone it was. Damn it.

_Then try to slow your fall. _Ty tried to open his wing again, and only succeeded in flipping himself so that he was falling backwards. Great. This was just great. His heart was racing, and he was having trouble catching his breath. "Someone help me!" he screamed.

It felt like forever, but was probably only a few seconds before an enormous paw wrapped around him, closing him in a small dark vise. Ty struggled, clawing at the scaly talons that enveloped him. "Stop that!" a familiar voice roared.

"Ember! Get me out of here!"

The paw released him, setting him gently on the ground. The enormous black dragon—he now realized it was Ember—landed beside him, shifting back into her hybrid form. "Are you alright?" she asked, resting her hand on his shoulder. The torn, mangled body of the other Ember lay in the dirt beside them.

"Yeah. Thanks, Em. I owe you twice."

"It is no problem." She smiled at him. Ty tentatively smiled back, glancing down at the fake Ember. Her purple hair was soaked with purple blood, and as he watched, she took a shuddering, weak breath.

She looked so much like the real Ember who now stood in front of him.

"Is… is the evil you alive?"

Ember looked down disdainfully. "I suppose she still is. But she will not be for much longer."

"Geez, Emma, what did you do to her?"

"Who is Emma?" Ember asked, raising her eyebrows.

Ty stared at her. "You are."

"I am _Ember_," she corrected. "We should get moving. I heard noises. Herobrine may be harming our friends."

That made no sense. "We're in the simulation, Em. Don't you remember?"

"Yes. Of course I do," she said, sounding frustrated. Something wasn't right. "Now we must go."

**_Ask her something._**

"What's my last name?" Ty blurted.

"Ellis," she replied instantly.

"I never told you that," he said, suspicious now. Suddenly it dawned on him. "You aren't the real Ember."

"Ty… what do you mean? Of course I am. I just saved your life."

He caught her arms, pinning them to her side. "No. You didn't. You've been trying to kill me and hurt me for the entire time I've been stuck in this stupid simulation!"

The fake Ember stared at him. "Y-you would not hurt me, right?"

"I'm going to kill you. You almost killed Ember." He glanced down at the body in the dirt. It was Ember, he realized, the real Ember.

"T-Ty… please do not hurt me."

**_Don't listen to her._**

_I know._

"I don't care what you say. I'm going to kill you."

"You are not a murderer, Ty," she pleaded.

"And you aren't even real." But he couldn't find the strength to actually go through with his plan.

She smiled and yanked away from him. "So weak. I knew it. You could never hurt me. Do you know why?"

"Why?" Ty asked, glaring at her. He should have killed her… but he couldn't, even though she wasn't even _real_.

"Because you care too much. You _love_ me."

"What the Nether?" he sputtered. "I don't. You're in my stupid head, and you've been trying to kill me!"

"Then why am I not dead?" she smirked. She snapped her fingers, and suddenly…

Jason. And Sky. And Mitch. "Guys!" Ty shouted. "What… what are you doing here?"

Sky scrambled back as Ty approached. "Stay away, you monster! Do _not_ come any closer!"

"Sky…," he started to say.

"We cannot let the monster talk!" Jason screamed, his eyes huge with fear. "His words are poison!"

"Jason!" Ty called miserably. "It's me! I'm still Ty, even though I… Even though I have wings, talons, a tail, and fangs. I won't hurt you, I promise! Just… just try to relax a bit. Please, guys, give me a chance to show you I'm not so bad. Please, _please_, PLEASE trust me."

His words didn't seem to have what could in any way be construed as a 'positive effect'. Jason screamed again and covered his ears, burying his face in his knees, which he had pulled in tightly to his chest. Mitch did almost exactly the same thing, except perhaps screaming a little louder in a substantially higher key. Ty didn't think that he'd ever be able to hit that note—a high b in the treble clef, wasn't it?

His attention was drawn from contemplating Mitch's operatic prowess by something so bizarre that it made his jaw drop. Ember's arms were wrapped around Sky's neck, and he'd pulled her into a kiss—the kind of kiss that makes small children turn away in disgust at the amount of saliva that the two participants are undoubtedly exchanging; the kind of kiss that makes people uncomfortable for just being within a mile of; the kind of kiss that made Ty want to punch Sky.

"Sky! What the—What are you _doing_?"

He didn't respond except to press his face even harder against Ember's.

**_Ty. You need to take care of the real Ember. If you don't, she could die._**

_But Sky is kissing Ember!_

**_And this is a simulation._**

_It isn't fair that he's kissing her!_ Ty thought furiously.

Eguire's surprise emanated through their mental link. **_You care?_**

_Umm… no?_

**_Good. Now start being useful._**

Ty crouched down by the real Ember's body. "Are you okay?"

"No. I… am… not… okay," she rasped.

"How do I get you out of here?"

"It is… too late… for… me." Blood spurted out of her mouth, and she coughed. "Get… out… while you… while you can."

"No. No, no, no. I'm not leaving. You saved my life, it's my turn to save yours."

"You cannot," she choked out, her eyes falling closed. A sigh escaped her lips, and she didn't take another breath. He ran his hand over the inside of her icy cold wrist, checking for a pulse. There had to be one, there had to be one, she wasn't dead, she had to be alive, her heart had to be beating still, there had to be a pulse.

But there wasn't.

"No, you aren't dead, just wake up, Emma!" Ty growled, shaking her shoulder. "This isn't funny!"

**_Time to go, Ty._**

_No._

**_You have to._**

_No._

**_GET UP._**

Staggering, Ty obeyed and rose to his feet, feeling like an automaton, like he was little more than a jumbled collection of wires, spring, and gears. As he did so, a gust of wind started up, whipping around him.

* * *

><p>With a gasp, Ty woke up, pain lancing through every inch of his body. There was no one here in the dark little room, except for Ember, who lay by the fear-stone, her limbs hanging as limply as a doll's.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys. I'm back. I know it took a while to update. <strong>

**It took a while to update because... well, life's been happening. I'm not going to go to much more detail than that.**

**Bottom line is, I'm not sure if I'll be continuing this story. I just... IDK. I feel like I can't do it. I'm not a good enough writer. So this might be the last chapter, and I'll post an A/N if it is.**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: Geez, I can't think of anything. Maybe "Lithium" by Evanescence.<strong>


	6. Wake Up (Ty)

Ty fell back against the cold floor, exhausted and too mentally tired to try to think. Ember was dead, and he hadn't even tried to save her. She'd saved his life. She'd gotten herself killed to save him. And even though she'd betrayed him and hurt him before, he owed her his life. Now he could never repay that debt.

He coughed, and something warm and wet trickled past his lips. He tasted it. Blood. It was salty and metallic and made him want to throw up. Ty coughed again, and this time he almost choked on his own blood and saliva and ended up sitting, hunched over as he spasmed through a coughing fit. When he took his hands away from his mouth, they were coated in green blood.

This wasn't good. And that was an understatement. Ty swallowed, gagging slightly at the taste of his blood. He needed to get help, and he needed to get away from here. He couldn't bear to be around Ember's dead body, he realized, not any longer. He into a kneeling position, wincing as pain throbbed through his broken ribs. Something felt like it was pounding on the inside of his head, pounding an incessant rhythm against his skull. A groan was torn away from his lips as the pounding increased in its tempo and intensity.

He felt his stomach start to churn, and then everything he'd eaten in the past ten or so hours was on the floor in a chunky beige pool. Once he'd started, Ty couldn't stop retching. His hands were trembling and he was sweating by the time he'd finished. He spat out the last few scalding drops of stomach acid that still stung his throat and leaned back onto his heels. It burned. And the headache was even worse than it had been before he'd thrown up.

Suddenly, a searing pain ripped across his chest. Ty gasped sharply, and then screamed in burning agony. He fell backwards, and the world faded away.

* * *

><p>When he woke up for a second time, Ty felt much better. His headache had faded away to a dull pulsing in the back of his mind, and he didn't feel quite so nauseous. Pressing lightly on his chest, he waited tentatively for a surge of pain that didn't come. So he'd healed. He sighed in relief, sitting up and taking deep breaths of the cool yet stale air. How long had he been unconscious? There wasn't any way of knowing, unfortunately.<p>

There was a rustling behind him. Maybe there were bats down here. Ty glanced around, but didn't see anything. Except… Ember! Her hand was still practically glued to the stone, but her other arm was brushing at herself, and her lips were pulled back in a silent scream. How? She was dead, wasn't she?

And then there was a flash of purple light, and she really was screaming. "Spi-sp-agh!" she howled, jumping up as though electrified and tripping over her own feet and falling over into a corner. "Get them away from me!"

"Emma? You're alive!"

She seemed to notice him for the first time, and her eyes widened in fear. "S-stay away!"

"What? What's going on, Em?"

A trembling hand rose and pointed at the corner, where, after squinting and focusing, Ty could just make out a tiny, tiny spider spinning a small web. "The spi-sp-spid-d-der," she whimpered. "And… and y-you. You're stil-l a simulation. St-stay away from m-me!"

"You're out of the simulation," Ty said, staring at her in disbelief.

"P-prove it. You t-tried t-to kill me. Y-you s-said you were… you were going to h-have rev-venge and-d y-you t-tried to _kill_ me and covered me in spiders and you let Sky and Jason and Mitch and everyone hurt me and Herobrine was there and he didn't help me and Seth just stood there laughing and my parents said it was g-good riddance and spiders came into my mouth and started to eat me from the inside out and then there were spiderwebs everywhere while I was trying to run and evil-me killed the nice you and Rose and Wisp and Ara and Seto and everyone was dead and it was my fault and I was being _eaten alive by spiders_! H-how can I b-be s-sure that-t I'm-m out-t-t?" Ember burst into tears.

**_This complicates matters._**

_Duh._

**_I was just saying…_**

_Yeah, well, stop saying and help me figure out how to prove that she's out._

"Look, I know it's kind of hard to believe, but you're free now. I don't exactly know what I did to you, but I won't hurt you."

She trembled, still staring at him as though waiting for him to pounce. The temptation was too much to resist. Ty moved towards her sharply, and Ember hissed and swiped her clawed hand across his cheek. He yelped.

"What was that for?"

"Y-you're s-still trying to kill me!" she wept.

"No, I was being an idiot! I'm sorry!" Ty said, clutching his hand to his face. _Stupid, stupid, stupid._ He shouldn't have messed with her.

**_I'm disappointed in you, Ty._**

_Save it._

**_She's obviously terrified. Would Ember have teased you like that?_**

_WHAT DID I JUST TELL YOU?_ He didn't want advice.

**_Save it. But I didn't listen._**

_I noticed._

**_Me too. _**

_Shut up. Please._

**_That should be a song._** Eguire seemed to be mentally humming to himself. Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last, Ty wondered about the sanity of the dragon in his head. Ember was still staring at him, her breath coming in quick, sharp, gasps.

"Em… how can I prove to you that you're out of the simulation?"

She shifted slightly, and he noticed that there was blood soaking her shirt. Her arms were covered in multiple raised marks—spider bites, he suddenly realized. "I d-don't kn-n-ow," she sniffed. "Y-you figure th-that out-t."

"Look, I'm sorry that I tried to scare you," Ty mumbled. "That was mean."

"You tried to kill me!" she wailed, burying her face in her hands.

"I didn't!" he shouted, aggravated. "So stop telling me I did, okay?"

Ember looked up, her bloodshot purple eyes meeting his. "But you did! And you _put spiders on me_! And… and… augh!" Then she was sobbing again, and Ty was still clueless as to what he could ever possibly say to her that would calm her down.

Slowly, he slid closer to her. Ember was rocking back and forth, seeming too lost in her own thoughts to notice him. "Hey," he whispered, as calmly as he could, placing a hand on her shoulders. She shuddered and started to rock faster.

"Stay away. Just stay away, keep the spiders away, get them off of me, get them off, get them off!"

"There aren't any spiders, Em," Ty said with a sinking heart. Had she completely lost it?

"Say you'll keep them away," she pleaded.

"I—what? Sure, I'll keep the spiders away."

Ember looked at him, but seemed to not see him. "Mama, Julian says that he'll punch me! So does Tanya! Keep them away from me!"

"What? I'm not your mom!"

"Don't make me go back to school! I don't want to go back!" she cried, her eyes glassy and alien.

"It's me, Ty!" he said, shaking her. She needed to snap out of this.

"I'm a freak," Ember whispered. "They called me a freak. Am I a freak, Mama?" Tears were running down her face. She'd never been so pale. Her brilliant purple eyes were huge, rimmed with clumps of long wet eyelashes.

"You're not a freak," Ty promised her. Was this a flashback? She trembled, then her eyes refocused on him.

"T-Ty?"

"Ty," he agreed, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her close. Ember buried her face into his chest, crying quietly. "Can you teleport us out of here?"

She looked up at him. "You're not a simulation," she decided finally.

"I know," Ty said dryly. He loved that she was shorter than him now that he was a hybrid too. It made her kind of cute, and he was pretty certain she hated his height advantage. So that made it a win-win.

"I think I can get us out of here," Ember muttered, sliding out of his embrace. He'd forgotten that he was holding her, actually. Then a horrible thought occurred to him.

"How do I know that you aren't a simulation? How do I know that I'm actually out of that?"

"You can't _know_, for absolute certain. But you can sense it. I just… just know that I'm out of it."

"Okay. I think I am too." Ty paused. "Did—did I pass the test?"

She looked at him, eyes unreadable. "Technically, no."

His heart climbed into his throat. "Then what happens?"

"You're not allowed to fail and survive, so Herobrine will most likely…"

"Kill me," Ty finished for her. Holy Notch. For all intents and purposes, he was dead. A godly death wish wasn't good…

"I was going to say never hear a word about what happened down here," Ember corrected him.

And then he felt as though he were flying and as though he'd never fall. "You'd do that for me?" She would… she would practically lie to Herobrine for him?

"You're my ally," she explained, offering her arm and helping Ty to his feet.

"Not ally," he told her, looking at her with new eyes. "Friend."

* * *

><p><strong>So, that was cute, and if you got the joke about S.U.P, then you're awesome. AND THEY ARE OUT OF THE SIMULATION. Yeah, I decided to continue at least for now. Updates will probably be a little less frequent, because of three things:<strong>

**1. Life.**

**2. National chess tournaments coming up.**

**3. I'M MAKING A DOCUMENTARY MY LIFE JUST GOT COOL!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: I CAN'T THINK OF ANYTHING BECAUSE LINDSAY LOHAN IS STUCK IN MY BRAIN ON REPLAY! How about... "Alice" by Avril Lavigne? IT SHALL HAVE TO DO!<strong>


	7. Write it Out (Ember)

**Hey guys, Nafia here, and I realized that this chapter needs a long author's note. If you actually read it, that would be cool.**

* * *

><p>Ember knew that she was seriously hurt. Movement ached because of the spider venom in her veins. She practically fell through the portal, and Ty caught her. She had tried not to let him see how hurt she was, but she couldn't stifle a sharp little squeak of pain.<p>

"Are you okay?"

"Fine," she mumbled, standing up. The scratch on his face from where she'd clawed him had healed. "I need to get some sleep."

"You should eat something first."

She couldn't eat anything. Just the thought of putting food in her mouth made her queasy. "Ty, I—"

He steered her towards the table. "What do you want?"

"To go to sleep." That's where everyone else was, anyway. It was late. Rose and Ara and Wisp and Seto were probably all asleep.

Ty rolled his eyes. "No, for food."

"I'm not hungry."

"Yeah, right. How could you not be hungry? I'm practically starving."

"Well, I'm not you." She tried to maintain her temper. Why couldn't he just let her sleep?

"How true." He turned away and whipped open a cabinet. It was filled with popcorn, popcorn, and more popcorn. "What do you guys even _eat_?"

"Popcorn, pancakes, brownies, ice cream, cereal and cake," Ember recited. "And that's about it, because no one voluntarily eats Wisp's soup."

"The main food groups, huh?"

"We go hunting sometimes," she said defensively.

Ty just stared at her.

"What?"

"You've never really had anyone to teach you better, I guess."

"Herobrine taught me everything I need to—," she started, before Ty cut her off.

"Everything you need to know to be effective for his purposes. What's two plus two?"

"I'm not an idiot. Four."

"Eight times seven."

She had to think about it. "Fifty-six, right?"

"Right. Try this: 'x' times seven equal forty-nine. What is 'x?'"

"Umm…" Maybe she could divide forty-nine by the seven? So that would be… "Seven?"

"Okay, nice. What about the square root of sixty-four?"

"What?" Ember asked, staring at him. "What's a square root?"

Ty shook his head. "How old are you?"

"Sixteen. But I'll be seventeen in a few days," she remembered.

"Then that makes you maybe two weeks older than me. You can do fourth-grade math, but you should be in high school."

"So?"

"So I can do more advanced math than you can."

"So?" she said again. "I can fly better than you. I bet I can hunt better than you."

"Can you write?" he asked.

"I can read," she offered. "I like reading. And I can write… at least, a little bit."

"See? Herobrine only taught you what he needed you to know."

"Math is pointless! And why do I need to know how to write?"

Ty stared at her. "Really? You don't care?"

Ember glared at him. "Really. I don't care. Now I want to go sleep." _And get away from you and all your knowledge that I don't have._

He intercepted her, blocking the way upstairs with his wing. "No, don't. This conversation is only just getting interesting."

"Oh, I bet it is. You just love making me feel stupid, don't you?" she hissed, surprised at how much anger there was in her voice.

"Emma—"

"My name is Ember," Ember growled. She just wanted a chance to take care of her injuries and sleep and be alone and not have to deal with Ty because he knew exactly how to tick her off and was three damned inches taller. Pulling away, she made a beeline for the stairs, only to have his hand catch her arm.

"I don't know why you hate that name so much," he said, sounding contrite.

"Oh, _please_. You're doing it on purpose," she scoffed, trying to dart up the stairs.

With anyone else, they would have known to let her go. Instead of doing the sensible thing, though, Ty caught her other arm with his iron grip. "I'm sorry if I made you feel bad."

"Herobrine damn it, Ty, let go of me!"

"No, wait, because I _am_ sorry."

She wanted to punch him, but he was holding her wrists. "I don't care!" Ember snapped, struggling to free herself. He was stronger than her, too. How was this fair?

Ty steered her backwards, setting her down into a chair. He didn't let go of her wrists, but leaned forward, exacerbating their height difference in a way that made her want to punch him even more than she already did. "Look, I know you're mad, but I don't know why. I was just trying to explain that maybe, just maybe, Herobrine didn't teach you everything that you might need to know."

"Yeah, well, you can just—" She stopped herself, biting her lip.

He didn't exactly smile, but his mouth twitched. "I can just what?"

"Never mind."

Now he really smiled. Ty seemed to be in an unnaturally good mood, Ember noticed. "Okay then. So you never told me what you wanted to eat."

"I told you I wasn't hungry."

"Whatever, you liar," he smirked, releasing her. She rolled her eyes at him and stood up—and immediately fell over.

As she hit the floor, the pain that had been throbbing at her redoubled itself. Ember cried out reflexively. Ty crouched down beside her, narrowing his eyes.

"You said you were fine," he accused.

"I am," she moaned. It wasn't exactly effective lying, because she could barely talk and tears were welling in her eyes.

He glared at her, vexed. "Stop being so stubborn. You are most definitely _not_ fine. Where are you hurting?"

"Everywhere," she practically sobbed, "but I don't need help."

"Oh, shut up, Em," Ty muttered. She tucked her knees against her chest as she lay on her side and tried not to start screaming from the burning pain. He poked her, and she yelped at the sudden spear of agony that shot up through her side. "Are you going to let me help you or not? Because if being poked hurts that much, you need help." He poked her again, almost experimentally.

"Or you could stop poking me," she ground out.

"Or _you_ could stop being an overly stoic idiot. Let me help you." Without waiting for her to respond, he picked her up and carried her over to the couch, setting her down on her back.

Ember felt sick. It was from the injuries that evil-Ty had caused, and the spider venom, she knew. How poisonous was it? And then… oh. The spiders had crawled into her mouth, hadn't they? They'd been biting her, tried to eat her from the inside out. Their poison must be kicking in now. It couldn't be fatal, right?

Right?

Ty smoothed out her hair softly. "Just relax, Em. Just relax." Slowly, she obeyed, allowing her muscles to lose their tension. "Now… this is from the simulation, right?"

"Right," she mumbled.

"So… what happened?"

"I saw… I saw the evil me and attacked her. I killed her, but you were falling towards the ground, and every time I took a step towards you, it was like I was moving backwards. And then you… you hit, and you got up and just brushed yourself off and told me that it was time for your revenge, and you… then you… I don't want to…" She didn't want to think about it anymore.

"Did I say something?" Ty asked.

"A few things, but it was what you did… it was what you did that was…"

"That was bad?" he suggested helpfully.

"Yeah."

"But what would have injured you?"

"You… tortured me and you put _spiders_ on me and they bit me and they climbed down my throat and tried to _eat_ me alive!" she choked. Holy Herobrine, it hurt so much to talk…and to breathe… and to exist…

Ty stared at her, shocked. "I'd never torture you!"

"But you did!" Well, it was his evil version, but it was hard to tell sometimes. The simulation Ty was a carbon copy of the Ty that was maybe-ish her friend.

"Em… in my simulation, the evil you… I could have killed her, but I couldn't. If that makes sense. I couldn't even hurt your evil doppelganger when I knew that it was a simulation." She could sense that he wasn't making it up. There was something in his voice that told her that he was telling the truth, some note of vulnerability, some realization that it was as confusing for him as it was for her.

"You couldn't kill me?" she asked. What...?

"Well… yeah. And… another part of my simulation was you being… you being dead. What does that mean, Em?"

There were two possible explanations, and only one had any chance of being likely. "It means that you want me dead but are scared of admitting it," she said, pulling away from him. "The simulation only shows your dark emotions."

She tried to escape, but he seemed to sense what she was thinking and caught her arms, holding her against the couch. "I'm not letting you go until you promise to stay here and stop freaking out. I won't hurt you, I swear. Just trust me, okay?"

"You want to kill me!"

"Damn it, I don't want to kill you! Let me explain, and I'd like your word that you're going to listen to me. You just have to listen."

Her mind raced. "Okay," she muttered. It hurt so much to talk, and it was unlikely that her plan would work. But it had to or he would probably kill her.

"Thank you," he muttered, letting go of her arms. Instantly, Ember snapped her fingers and rolled to the side, falling through the portal that she'd just created.

When she hit the ground on the other end, she instantly blacked out. She hoped she'd be safe here.

* * *

><p><strong>So... the long author's note. First of all, I realized that I was so preoccupied yesterday that I forgot to thank all the people who gave those reviews and wanted me to continue. It's so hard to pull out of a hiatus, and I couldn't have done it without you guys reviewing and supporting me through what's been a pretty difficult point in my life. Here it is: THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH, AND I'M SORRY FOR BEING TOO DISTRACTABLE AND TIRED TO GIVE YOU GUYS THE THANKS YOU DESERVE. HERE IT IS IN CAPS LOCK. <strong>

**Secondly, I just want to say that I think that the story will be better for me having gone on temporary hiatus. I feel like I worked out some major plot kinks (I literally don't ****_have_**** a set plot, so this is all me ad-libbing), and some character issues.**

* * *

><p><strong>Sky:<strong> WHEN DO I GET BACK WITH EMBER?  
><strong>Me:<strong> When I feel like it.  
><strong>Jason:<strong> When do I get together with Aradyn?  
><strong>Me:<strong> Also when I feel like it.  
><strong>Mitch:<strong> WHEN DO I GET TO BE NOT UNCONSCIOUS?  
><strong>Seto:<strong> WHEN I STOP TASERING YOU.  
><strong>Me:<strong> AUGH! I AM SURROUNDED BY IMBECILES!

* * *

><p><strong>So then there's that.<strong>

**And thirdly, I want to say thanks again, especially to the people who've been there through the terribleness of Sunset. I look back at that story and feel so stupid for my choppy 500 word chapters, bad dialogue, cringe-worthy fluff, and lame jokes. Now I think we're pretty much down to 'cringe-worthy fluff' and 'lame jokes.' I've improved so much as a writer, and I'm so glad to have had this opportunity get better. THANK YOU PEOPLE! REMEMBER TO READ AND REVIEW! (If you're reading this, I probably don't need to remind you to 'read,' but still. It's the thought that counts.)**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Blonde" by Bridgit Mendler<strong>


	8. Soda (Sky)

Sky stared at the prison hallway. Was that… _Ember_? What was she doing here? Maybe she was going to tell them how Ty had done on his test. But then why was she lying on her face?

"Jason!" he hissed, jabbing his sleeping friend.

"Mmph. Go 'way," Jason mumbled, rolling over and ignoring Sky.

"Jason!" he repeated more urgently. "Get up!"

"Grmplgrmph."

Sky pinched Jason's arm, hard. "Jason, seriously."

"I told you to go away," Jason sighed.

"JASON!" Sky roared, leaning over and yelling directly into Jason's face. "GET UP. NOW."

"Geez, can a guy get a little peace? I'm in a food coma," he said, turning around so that he could look up at Sky. He looked a bit like a puppy, with his big eyes and completely guileless expression.

"Be in a food coma later. Get up now."

"But I don't want to," Jason pleaded, falling back and raising a hand over his eyes as though to ward off a bright light.

"Ember's here."

"I don't ca—wait, what?" he asked, sitting up so fast that his head collided with Sky's nose. "Ember is here? As in, _Ember_ is_ here_?"

"That's what I just told you!" Sky groaned.

"What does she want?" Jason asked.

"You go figure that out. It's my turn to be in a food coma."

"Very funny," he muttered, rolling to his feet. Sky grinned at Jason, who only shook his head and moved over to the bars. "Geez, Sky, she looks hurt."

"Yeah. Why do you think she's here?"

"I don't know," Jason said quietly, "but it's probably not just for a visit. Why isn't she moving?"

"I think she might be…" Sky squinted. "I think she might be unconscious."

Jason glanced at Sky then. "Does she have a key, do you know?" He got the hidden message.

A key… if she had a key, and if they could get the key… There wasn't a guard right now. They might be able to escape. They could get out of here. "She might," Sky whispered, instinctively lowering his voice. "But even if she did, how could we get it?" Another thought occurred to him. "And how would we get Mitch out of here?"

"We'd have to leave Mitch. That'd be the only way we could escape."

"They'd punish him for us escaping," Sky realized.

"If we make it out, we'll come back and rescue him. He'll understand." Jason sounded like he was trying to convince himself. Would Mitch understand that they had had no choice but to leave him? Sky wasn't sure.

"Maybe he will, maybe he won't. But how are we even going to get out of this place? Do you know where the portal is?"

"When they brought you in they came from the main entrance… It must be somewhere near there."

"I guess…," Sky said slowly. "But what do you think they'd do to Mitch? I mean… they wouldn't kill him, right?"

"I hope not. But I don't… I just don't know. I mean, they've already… already tortured me for not doing anything. I guess… I guess they might kill him."

"Then we can't leave," Sky sighed. They couldn't let Mitch die.

"Sky…" Jason hesitated. "I… I don't want you to think I'm a coward, but… I need to… I can't… I need to get out of here! It's just… I can't stay here. You have no idea the sort of stuff that Seto and Herobrine… that they've done to me. I can't wait here any longer than I have to. If I get a chance, I'm leaving, no matter… pretty much no matter what." There were tears in his eyes now. "I'm not a coward, but I'm… but I'm scared."

"What did Herobrine do to you?" Sky asked, morbidly curious.

"Look, I'd rather not relive it," Jason said stiffly.

"I'm just trying to understand."

Jason took a deep breath. "Well, you saw what the pigmen did, and then a few, um… little scratches. Fine." He slid the bottom of his shirt up to just below his ribs.

His entire torso was covered in red, blistered sores, not quite burns, but not quite cuts, either. They crisscrossed each other in a latticework of red paths. There were some marks in the shape of hand prints, and those ones looked even more painful. The skin was peeling away from the swollen blisters, making it look as though Jason were melting. There wasn't a square inch of healthy skin left anywhere. "What did he _do_ to you?" Sky asked.

"What does it look like?"

He couldn't help but answer the rhetorical question. "It looks like you were attacked by Bonks's curling iron."

"It _feels_ like it, except the curling iron was probably coated in poison ivy. That's what the cuts are from," Jason explained. "Me scratching. It just itches and burns all at once and I scratch it and make it worse. I can't help it."

Well, Sky couldn't exactly blame Jason for wanting to get out of this place at any cost. "Did Seto do any of that to you?"

"He just kept me from running while Herobrine did… did what he did. And then… well, Herobrine made him do… some stuff. I don't want to talk about it."

Sky loosely encircled Jason with his arms, hugging him awkwardly so that he wouldn't hurt him. "I'm sorry."

"You didn't do anything," Jason said, standing stiffly at attention until Sky released him.

"I should have stayed, or made you come. I let the pigmen take you. It's my fault."

"It isn't," he replied, "and even if it was I would forgive you."

"It's still my fault," Sky whispered.

"Shut up," Jason said with a weak attempt at a smirk.

Something rustled in the hallway, and Sky turned his attention from Jason to Ember, who'd slowly pushed herself into a sitting position. She was covered in purple blood, and every movement looked as if it pained her. "What are you doing here?" Sky asked, trying to keep the apprehension out of his voice.

"I… don't know. I just… just teleported somewhere random. I guess I was thinking of here." She shuddered slightly.

"Did Ty pass the test?" Jason wondered, pressing himself against the bars.

"He's alive," she said, "and Herobrine will hear that he passed."

"What does that even mean?"

Ember coughed. "It means that he… passed in every way that counts." A thought seemed to occur to her. "How did you know… about the test?"

"Wispice told us," Jason informed her.

"Ah." She was avoiding Sky's eyes. A long pause ensued, during which Jason glared at Ember, and Ember examined at the ground.

"So… you turned Ty into a hybrid," Sky said to fill the silence.

"Yeah."

"He didn't want that," Jason growled. "He'd rather be dead than with Herobrine."

"Ty has… informed me of that. Multiple times."

"How… how do you think he's adjusting?" he finally asked.

"Pretty well. He can see again, which I… I think he likes." Every word seemed to pain her.

"You healed his eyes?"

"Yeah."

"What about… his scars?"

Ember turned to stare at Jason. "Scars?"

"You know. On his arms."

Her face was completely blank, but Sky could practically see the gears turning in her head. Oh shit. He rapped Jason sharply with his elbow. "_She doesn't know_," he hissed.

"_What?_" Jason whispered. "_Oh. Crap._"

"You mean… _those_ kind of scars?" Ember asked, shock in her voice. "Like… he…?"

"Yeah," Jason admitted. "Damn it, Ty's going to kill me. He didn't want people to know that he'd… that he'd…"

"I didn't notice any scars," she said levelly, though Sky could tell that she was startled by the knowledge.

"Ember," Sky called, interrupting her and Jason's conversation. She looked up, and he caught her perfect amethyst eyes. All the words died in his throat, which was suddenly very dry.

"Yes?" she muttered, dropping her gaze.

"I…" What could he say? _Why did you do this? Why did you have to betray me? Why do you have to be evil? Was there anything I could have done that would have changed your mind? Can we ever be what we were again? Do you still love me? Did you _ever_ love me?_ He settled on a simple, "Why?"

"Why what?"

"I think you know what."

"Enlighten me," Ember dared him.

Jason groaned theatrically. "He means, 'Why are you an evil bitch?'"

"That's not what I meant," Sky protested feebly, not sure which of them he was speaking to. He felt as though pressure was building in his head, like he was a giant soda that had been shaken too hard. He felt as though something was about to explode.

"Yeah, well, I'm wondering that," Jason retorted.

Ember bit her lip. "I don't know how you can go from having a civil conversation to being a complete jerk!"

"I don't know how you could go from being someone that I was in love with to being an evil agent of Herobrine!" Sky screamed. Ah. _He_ was what would explode.

"You never loved me!" she shouted.

"I did! I did, and you betrayed me!"

"I did the right thing! It's what's best!"

"It's what's best for _you_! You've never cared about anyone, have you? How could you possibly know what love is? You're a monster, and I wish I'd seen it sooner!" he yelled, his voice hoarse from shouting.

"Shut up! Shut up, _shut up_! Just SHUT UP! You have no idea what you're talking about, human, you can't have any idea what I've been through!"

"What _you've_ been through? You've had it easy!"

"I've had a dragon stuck in my head since I was six! My entire family is dead! And whenever I try to do something that'll make this stupid world a better place, this is the thanks I get! You've been a spoiled little human, haven't you? You and all your friends are 'Team Crafted' and you all think you're _so _cool, strutting around in your big fancy house!"

"_You_ shut up!" Sky screamed at her.

"FINE!" she snarled, snapping her fingers and disappearing.

Sky turned to Jason, his anger quickly fading away. "What… did I just…?"

"Have a complete meltdown? Yeah."

"Holy Notch. I didn't mean to." Now that he could think straight again, he regretted his outburst.

"I thought it was pretty impressive," Jason offered.

"I'm so dead."

"Well, yeah, but at least you'll go out with a bang."

"Herobrine will kill me."

"Or Ember will. The Nether hath no fury like a woman scorned."

"She doesn't even like me, Jase."

"You so sure about that?"

"She says I _strut_. I don't _strut_."

"Again, are you so sure about that?"

Sky turned to glare at him. "What's that supposed to mean?"

* * *

><p><strong>Whoa. Dat fight tho. Is there any hope for #... oh snap.<strong>

**Dangit, I don't have a ship name for Ember/Sky! Someone come up with one, please! Tell meh in the comments! Also, you guys got a long chapter! YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Hopelessly Devoted To You" by Olivia Newton John. <strong>**_But you pushed my love aside_****... ****_Hopelessly devoted to you!_**


	9. Belladonna (Ty)

Ty heard a thump and ran down the stairs to find Ember lying on the couch, her knees tucked into her chest and tears in her eyes. As soon as she noticed him, she started to get up. "Em, I swear that I'm not going to hurt you. Just relax."

"Stay away, then."

He bit his lip, trying not to be hurt. Why would he be hurt by that comment? It was just Ember being Ember. That didn't make it sting any less, though. "You're injured."

"Yeah, I noticed."

"Then you won't mind that I'm going to help you," Ty informed her, stepping close to her and catching her hands before she could teleport away. "Don't freak out."

Ember hissed at him—literally. Her lips were pulled back, revealing fangs, and it made Ty shiver just a little bit. "Get. Away. From. Me. Right. Now."

"Stop that," he ordered her as calmly as he could. "And technically, hissing at me because I'm holding your wrists is 'freaking out.' Hold still."

Ty had learned from experience that he had to keep at least one hand restraining her if he didn't want her to teleport, so now he pressed against her shoulder with his left hand, keeping her from rising. His right hand rested gently on her belly, and as she growled, he could feel the vibrations coming through her. "What are you doing?" Ember asked, a slight tremor in her voice.

"I'm taking care of you," Ty answered. He slid her shirt up to a few inches below her ribcage and stopped in shock.

There were two things that had shocked him. One was the long, thick scar that split her torso into perfect halves. The scar was blackish-grey in color, and small black scales covered the skin. It wasn't skin on the scar, Ty realized, but dragon leather. Towards the edge of this giant seam, the skin was incredibly pale, almost white, and looked very delicate. He couldn't see where the scar ended, but it probably traveled up to near her collar.

The other thing that shocked him was the veins in her belly. They were visible through her skin, and were puffy, appearing like navy blue streaks that crisscrossed her skin. The spider venom, he realized. It was that spider venom that must have made them so sick and swollen. Ember shuddered as he traced one of the veins with the tip of his forefinger. "Please stop. It hurts."

"Sorry," he mumbled, ducking his head. Ty would ask her about the scar later. For now, he had to figure out how to get spider venom out of her veins. "How are you not crying by now? It looks really… painful."

"It _is_ really painful," she admitted. "I'm just not a big crier."

Ty didn't exactly know how to respond to that. He'd seen her crying plenty.

Ember seemed to know precisely what he was thinking. "I've cried more in the last week than in the last five years. Actually, more than in probably the last _ten_ years."

"Wow," was all he could think to say. He took a deep breath and tried to figure out what he could do to help her. Was there an antidote?

"So why do you want to… kill me?" she asked abruptly.

"What? I don't—I don't want to kill you." He was barely focused on her anymore; Ty's mind was racing at a million miles per hour as he tried to remember the antidote to spider venom. Belladonna in small doses could help with foxglove poisoning, but that didn't matter. Foxglove, in turn, could help to cure monkshood poisoning, but again, what good would that do?

"Then why did you watch… watch me die in your simulation?"

"That's what I asked you earlier, and you flipped out about. And anyway, if I'd wanted you to die and watched you die in the simulation, that doesn't make any sense, because the simulation only shows things that I don't want to have happen." Geez, he wished he'd paid more attention in the Brewing class at school. Pennyroyal? Mulberry leaves?

Ty could barely think straight anymore, because he could smell the intoxicating jasmine scent that came from Ember. Why did she have to smell so damned good? He couldn't even—oh. He could just go find Seto. "Wait here, please, Em. I need to go get Seto. He'll be way more useful than me."

Without giving her a chance to respond, he hurtled up the stairs. Which room was Seto's? He opened the one to his left tentatively. Rose was snoring inside. Wrong. He tried the next door and found Aradyn. The next door led to a purple room with no one inside. Ty was willing to bet that it was Ember's. The next room was his. The next one was Wispice.

Of course. That meant that the last door he'd check was Seto's. Just his luck. He stepped into the sorcerer's room. "Seto?" he called softly.

A sharp scent hit his nose, and he sneezed reflexively. It was acidic and highly unpleasant to his fine-tuned senses. Ty sneezed again before moving closer to the motionless lump that lay on the bed. "Seto?" he repeated.

No answer. Ty gingerly shook the sleeping sorcerer.

The reaction was immediate. Seto gasped and whipped around to stare at Ty, shrinking back and away from him. "Wh-what do you want?" he stammered.

"Seto, relax. It's just me." What was that all about?

"Oh. Ty. I thought… I thought… never mind." In the darkness, Seto's face looked almost mottled, as though he were covered in a variety of bruises. "Well… you startled me."

"Are you okay?" Ty asked, concerned.

"Okay? Yeah. I'm okay. What are you doing here?"

"Ember needs help. She's really sick."

"Like, sick? Or throwing-up sick? Or something else?" Seto asked.

"Umm… spider bites," Ty said.

"Spider bites? You woke me up at three in the morning for _spider bites_?" The sorcerer's expression was indignant.

"It's not that simple. In her simulation, apparently I covered her in spiders and they bit her and some got in her mouth and were trying to eat her from the inside out. She's got bites everywhere, and she doesn't want me to touch her because it hurts too much."

"Ty, she _never_ wants _anyone_ to touch her."

"She's lying on the couch curled up in a ball and trying not to cry, Seto! She's hurting and I can't fix it, so I thought you might be useful!"

Seto blinked as he seemed to realize the significance of what Ty had said a moment before. "Wait a minute. You said… _her_ simulation?"

"Yes! And it's a long story that I'll explain when you come down and take care of her!"

"I don't know… you might be overreacting…"

Ty hissed out a breath in frustration at the sorcerer's reluctance to help. "Look, if you don't get up right now and help her, I'll carry you downstairs so you have to take care of her." He scooped up Seto easily.

The terror that something so simple triggered was incredible to Ty. Seto twisted and thrashed wildly like someone being stabbed. "Stop! Stop! Let me down and I'll help. I promise. Just set me down!" he pleaded.

"Too late," Ty said coolly.

"Please, Ty, you're hurting me! It hurts! Set me down!" Seto begged. Ty glanced at his prisoner and realized that there were actual tears running down the sorcerer's face as he struggled desperately to escape. Instantly Ty felt awful. He set Seto back down, and the sorcerer lay very still, trembling slightly.

"What's wrong?"

"N-n-nothing," Seto whispered. "Absolutely nothing. I'll be down in five minutes."

"I'll wait here for you," Ty offered, concerned for him. What had Seto so jumpy?

"No! J-just… you should go make sure Ember's alright. Yeah. Go do that. Give me five minutes. I'll come downstairs then."

"Okay," Ty agreed suspiciously. Seto was definitely not telling him something.

* * *

><p>Ember was still where he'd left her when he came back. Good. At least she trusted him that much. He crouched beside her, stroking her hair lightly. She opened her amethyst eyes, and he was suddenly struck by how purple they were. "Ty… you and I need to talk."<p>

"Well, I agree with that. I have some questions. And I'm listening now," Ty smiled as gently as he could. Ember shook her head.

"Later. When I feel more like… like I'm not dying."

"Don't say stuff like that. You're not going to die."

"We… all will, eventually."

"Don't say stuff like that, either."

"Fine."

Ty felt Ember stiffen as his hand slid down to her shoulder. "Relax," he reminded her, rubbing the tense muscle slowly. She nodded, wincing every time his fingers pressed too hard.

"Why are… you being so… nice to me?"

"I'm not being _nice_," Ty huffed. "I'm taking care of you."

"That's nice, though. Why?"

"Because… because you're my friend."

Just then, there was an enormous, thundering crash. "Ow!" Seto came tumbling down the staircase, and limping into the room. "Hey guys. Sorry I took a while."

"No problem," Ty sighed, relieved.

"It's… not you who's been half eaten by spiders, hmm?" Ember said to Ty, arching an eyebrow.

"Stop it with the melodrama, Em," Seto chided. "You weren't 'half eaten' by spiders."

"It feels like it," she muttered. Seto rolled his eyes.

"That's still melodrama."

"Whatever." Her eyes flicked over to Ty, and then back to Seto, who was crouched beside her, digging in one of his pockets. "Why do you… smell like blood?"

Seto looked at her and blinked. "I… what?"

"You… smell like blood. What happened?"

Ty sniffed the air. She was right! That was what that awful acid scent was. Seto didn't stink quite as strongly anymore, but the sharp smell of blood was definitely coming from him. There were other smells, too.

"Seto…" Ember started.

"Why would I smell like blood?" he scoffed.

"I don't know. That's why I'm wondering."

"Seto, tell us what's wrong," Ty ordered.

The sorcerer looked back and forth between them like a cornered animal. "I… I can't. I can't… I can't tell you guys, I'm sorry… I'm sorry…"

"You have to," Ember told him. Ty was impressed that even though she was probably in pain that he couldn't even begin to understand, she managed to sound forceful.

"I… no… I can't… I just… he'll… no."

"Seto, I'm ordering you to tell me why you smell like blood."

"There's nothing to tell," Seto said weakly.

"You're lying," she scoffed.

"I'm sorry, Em. I won't tell you. I… can't tell you… I can't," Seto looked at his feet. "Punish me if you want to. I know you're allowed to do anything to me since I disobeyed. I won't fight, no matter what you decide to do to me. But I can't tell you."

Ember glared at him. "Seto, you know… you know I don't want to punish you. I don't want to hurt… don't want to hurt you."

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

"Look, Seto, can you take care of her?" Ty said, interrupting them.

"Umm, yeah," he said, glancing back and forth between them again. "Yeah. Sage will help. And, uh, garlic. Garlic's usually for snake bite, but it could help, and it won't hurt. Um, and then a really small dose of belladonna will help Em sleep." With each ingredient he named, he pulled out a new bundle of herbs or a small bottle from the pockets of his cloak. He pointed at them each in turn. "Sage extract. Drink a tablespoon of. Garlic. Eat half a clove. Belladonna. Eat one berry, any more is probably fatal. Oh, and Ember shouldn't touch it, because the poison can be absorbed through the skin."

"Poison?" Ty asked, staring at the scrawny sorcerer.

"It's also called deadly nightshade, but it should be okay in small doses. You'll feel better soon," Seto said, addressing the last part to Ember.

"Seto," Ember called, catching his hand. Ty watched them wordlessly, feeling something strange pressing on the inside of his head. It wasn't fair that she was holding Seto's hand. "Thank you."

"No problem, Em," he smiled. "Here." He handed her a spoon filled with something green, which she drank, making a face.

"That… tastes awful." She looked so pale.

"It'll soothe the bites," Ty told her.

"That doesn't make… it taste better," she retorted tiredly.

"Yeah, well…" He didn't have a better comeback than that.

Seto grinned at them. "I bet you'll like the garlic better, Em."

"Ugh. I hate… you both. Hand… it over." She took a small bite of the garlic clove and her face turned green. Seto laughed then, and she glared at him. "You said the… the garlic couldn't hurt."

He shrugged. "I didn't say it would be delicious, either."

"This… is pain, Seto. Extreme pain."

"Shut up and eat your garlic," Seto told her. Ember obeyed, and Ty watched with some amount of fascination as she turned, in quick succession, white, green, white again, and then a quite exquisite shade of crimson.

"Seto… I think you… should know that our friendship is at an end."

He smirked. "I love you too. Now eat your deadly nightshade." Ty felt something angry stir in his chest at Seto's words, but pushed it to the side. _Out of my head, Eg._

**_I'm not doing anything._**

"Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"Positive."

She sighed. "Absolutely sure?"

"I'm certain," Seto said soothingly.

Tentatively, she swallowed the berry. Almost instantly, her eyelids began to droop. Ty caught her before she could fall off the couch. Ember didn't resist as he moved her to the floor, setting her head in his lap. Seto raised an eyebrow. "What?" Ty asked the sorcerer coldly, his fingers twining in Ember's hair without him really being conscious of it.

Ember sighed sleepily, rolling onto her side so that he could rub her shoulders. Ty obliged her tacit request, and tried not to smile as he felt a slight vibration start in her throat. "Are you purring?"

"Why… rrr… would I be…. rrr… purrrrrring?" she breathed, barely able to talk around the deep rumble that was, indeed, a purr.

"Never mind," he grinned. "Go to sleep."

Her eyes fluttered closed as she pressed against his leg, still purring like a rusty motor.

After a few minutes, Seto broke the silence. "She likes you."

"Excuse me?" Ty asked, stunned.

"She totally likes you."

"How do you figure that?"

"She's asleep, purring away in your lap_. I think that means she likes you_," Seto smiled.

"No, it doesn't," Ty said dismissively. "She just passed out and I'm the closest thing to a pillow she has."

"Oh, yeah, right. There's a couch right behind you."

"Seto. Less than an hour ago, she freaked out and teleported away from me because she thought I was trying to kill her."

"Hmm?" Seto rubbed his forehead. "I must have missed that. Okay, she doesn't like you. No chance in the Aeth—Nether."

"Yeah. I noticed."

"Now… you were going to tell me about the simulation and how she ended up in it. Skip no details."

"I warned you, it's a long story," Ty said, stalling.

"I'm listening," Seto replied, moving to sit beside Ty. "So you should be talking."

* * *

><p><strong>What's up with Seto? <strong>

**I KNOW! **

**Shaddup brain! **

**BUT I KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING TO SETO! POOR SETO!**

**What did I just say, brain?**

* * *

><p><strong>And what's all this about #Tymber? I've seen that hashtag, and honestly I'm alarmed. Don't you guys know that if they had a hashtag, it would be #Emberlox? Doesn't that sound epic? And d'ya see what I did there? Sorry, mini rant over.<strong>

**Also, y'all got a chapter that was meant to be two chapters, but because I'm special, it's one uber-awesome chapter of awesomeness. You're all so lucky.**

**Also, the research I put into this thing is unreal. For example, when I was working on the scene with the fear simulation, it was originally going to be a sort of potion that they'd give Ty, sort of like in Divergent. I searched for plants that would increase anxiety and aggression (the scene that I ended up writing was so different from what I'd thought I'd write), and ended up learning about seratonin and what sort of stuff it does. For this chapter I researched poisons and medieval antidotes and stuff. I just thought you might be interested to know a little bit more about how I go about writing. IDK. I love learning about how other people write and stuff.**

**Also, how cute is it that Ember purrs? Very, very cute.**

**Also, I use the word also a lot.**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Falling Slowly," the Taylor John Williams version.<strong>


	10. Shtuff (Jerome, Jason, & Seto)

Ian blinked at the black object he'd found. "Jay-Jay! What are these?"

"I'm Jerome! And those are glasses. You should put them on your face," Jerome practically pleaded.

"Okay!" Ian grinned. "Where's my face?"

"Notch damn it, fish, why did you leave me alone with this idiot?" Jerome screamed, hoping that Husky would hear him and come to the rescue.

"Ooh, fish! I like fish! Especially fish _cake_!"

"No! Not fish cake!" he yelped.

"_FISH CAKE!_" Ian squealed, jumping up and down. Jerome stared at him, backing away slowly. Ian had been in full Derp mode for an entire day. It was too much for any human to take, let alone a Bacca, what with their incredibly sensitive ears. Derp Ian was loud. "Let's have some fish cake, Fluffy!"

What could he do? "You need to wear your glasses to eat fish cake, Ian. Everyone knows that."

"But I can't put them on my face. Jay-Jay, do I have a face?"

"Here. Hold still."

"I don't like holding still!" came the suddenly belligerent response.

"Ian, we're going to play a game. It's called 'Hold Still.'" If this worked, Jerome wouldn't let Ian ever live it down.

"Awesome! How do we play?"

"You hold still."

"Okay!"

Before Ian could react, Jerome had slammed the glasses over his eyes. Ian blinked rapidly, and then his eyes refocused.

"Jerome! Holy Notch, I'm sorry! Please don't kill me!"

One more day, Jerome reminded himself. One more day before Sky should come back and could take over the job as Official Babysitter of Ian.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Meanwhile<em>****…**

* * *

><p>Sky was snoring loudly in the corner of the cell. Jason was crouched in the opposite corner, hands clamped tightly over his ears. That snoring was horrible. Absolutely horrible. And so was the pain that was coming from the blisters all over his chest and stomach.<p>

Jason took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He hurt _so much_, more than he'd let on in his conversation with Sky. He couldn't take much more, he knew. And they'd missed their chance to escape. So what was left for him here? Just more pain, more torture as he fought to resist Herobrine and his plan. There was no way out.

Well, there was one. He could always join Herobrine and let Ember stick a freaking dragon in his head and become a monster and a servant to the god of evil. But that was hardly even thinkable. But it would stop the pain. But…

Who was he kidding? It wasn't an option. He'd never join Herobrine.

Would he?

No, Jason told himself. _No. Don't think about that. You'll never join him. You'll stay strong and find a way out of here._ But he only half believed himself. He'd spent so long in this cramped little cell. Did it really matter anymore? He'd fought, put up a resistance. And it wouldn't work. He could just give up now, give in to whatever Herobrine demanded.

_No, you can't give up!_ his mind screamed. But it would be so easy…

Across the room, Sky snored on, blissfully unaware of the turmoil that raged in Jason's mind.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Meanwhile<em>****...**

* * *

><p>Seto had forced himself to climb the steps back to his room after his talk with Ty. Achingly, he bent over to pick up the blood-covered shirt that lay on his floor. He had to make sure no one found it. He'd been so scared that Ty would notice something when he'd come in.<p>

Every inch of him throbbed with pain as he crawled into his bed. Gingerly, he ran his hands along his side, pulling off his shirt so that it wouldn't rub against the wounds. Seto wrapped the sheets over his shoulders so that if Ember came in she wouldn't see the mess of burns that covered his body. It hurt so much, and he tried not to cry.

Seto wished he had his cat with him. He missed his cat so much. Had Thimble run off again? He hoped not, though he knew that his little black cat could take care of himself from experience. Many days he'd woken up to find a dead mouse or bird lying at the foot of his bed, and a contented feline purring on his head. He almost smiled at the memories.

Almost.

_ It'll be better soon_, he told himself, burying his nose into a pillow. _Soon you'll see. Everything is going to work out._

But the words in his head didn't really mean anything, and Seto simply lay there, shivering and sweating all at once, hoping against hope that no one would come to check on him.

And the words, meaning nothing, couldn't hold back the tears that had started to run silently down his face, teaching him the real meaning of salt in the wound as they connected with the burns and blisters that covered him.

* * *

><p><strong>#Ian'sBabysitter is all I can think of. Also, don't do it, Jason! Don't join Herobrine!<strong>

**Aradyn: Do it, Jase! Join us!**

**Please excuse her. She's never had a boyfriend, or really even seen boys. Naturally, she's obsessed with Jason. And then, poor Seto! If only you guys knew...**

**I KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING!**

**Brain, what have I said about spoilers?**

**BUT THAT DOESN'T CHANGE THE-**

* * *

><p><em><strong>A loud thump is heard, followed by a scream of pain.<strong>_

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry guys, had to go smack my brain against the wall. No SOTC today because this is a Shtuff, not a chapter. BYE!<strong>


	11. Help (Ember)

Ember woke up slowly, unwilling to part from her dream. Oh well. She was awake, she supposed, and she'd have to stay that way. She stretched her wings, and then stiffened as someone brushed against her shoulder. "Who's there?"

"Hey, Em. It's just me," Ty said.

She cracked her eyes open. Ember was lying on the couch, Ty standing over her like some kind of hawk, casting its protective eye over its domain. His hand rested on her shoulder soothingly. "What all happened? I don't… I don't remember everything," she admitted.

"Well, Seto gave you something to take care of the venom, and then a sleeping potion, and you've been out pretty much ever since." Ty grinned, appearing to recall some little detail. "You were purring."

"I don't purr," Ember informed him icily. _At least, not often._

"Want to bet?"

"What?"

"I mean, I think I could make you purr," he said, his green eyes meeting hers with such an intense stare that she couldn't look away. Ember was suddenly sharply aware that Ty's hand was still resting on her shoulder, toying with a strand of her hair. He smirked slightly, and then his hand slid up to her jawbone, brushing against the skin of her throat. "Should I try?"

"Stop it," she muttered, feeling a surge of heat start to creep over her skin.

"Are you blushing?" Ty asked curiously, before he moved his hand up a little further, until it was just behind her ear. "Do I make you blush?"

"I said stop," Ember growled, hoping that her voice wouldn't squeak.

"Fine," he sighed, resorting to stroking her hair. She stretched and sat up, and Ty plopped down next to her. Ember couldn't decide whether to hiss at him or snuggle up to him. She ended up compromising and sitting stiffly where she was.

They each waited for the other to speak, and while they did so, Ember's mind started to race away at a million miles an hour. However, her thoughts kept circling back to one thing. One person, actually.

Sky.

She wondered how he was doing. Wondered what he was doing. Ember wondered if he'd meant what he'd said to her, about her being a monster. She wasn't one, but… Ember knew that to most people, she was. She knew that her human form was considered pretty, but she'd seen how repulsed Sky and Ty and Mitch had been when they first saw her hybrid form. Even Seto… even Seto thought of her as a monster.

"Em," Ty started, shaking her arm. "You there?"

"Oh! Yeah. What?"

"What did you think we needed to talk about?"

"Oh… Umm, you said we needed to too, so… you first."

"Alright." He thought for a minute. "Lie down."

"What?" she asked, unsure if she'd heard correctly.

"Just do it."

Slowly, she obeyed, resting her head on his leg. Ty gently slid her shirt up to slightly below her ribs. "What are you doing?"

"You have a scar," he murmured, touching the thin skin that surrounded it. She tried not to react, but felt herself stiffen. "What's it from?"

"When I became a hybrid. You can see the dragon scales, can't you?"

"They're very small," Ty said, nodding. "Why do you have scales on the scar?"

"It's because the scars are right where my human essence met Zariah's dragon essence."

"And they're from when you fused. It's like a birthmark of the hybrid you."

Ember had never thought of it that way. "I guess so."

He moved her shirt back down, and she sat up. "Do I have a birthmark?" Ty asked.

"Yeah. We all do."

"Cool," was all he said. "So what did you want to talk to me about?"

Oh. This was going to be awkward. "Just relax."

"I _am _relaxed."

"Okay." She caught his arm, and he met her eyes, his green ones filled with trepidation. Slowly, Ember ran her hands down towards Ty's wrist, not breaking eye contact with him. With a quick movement, she turned over his hand, and realized that Jason was right. There were pale, thin ridges across the inside of his wrist. The skin there was slightly puckered as it was pulled up into a raised scar.

As soon as he saw what she was looking at, Ty gasped and tried to pull away. She let him fall back against the couch, where he lay, his eyes widened in shock. "How did you—how'd you know?"

"Jason mentioned it."

"Jason? _Jason_!? He swore he'd never tell!"

"He thought I already knew," Ember told him. She could hear his heart racing and smell the blood that ran through his veins, along with the strong scent of pine that seemed to always be exuded by him.

"What are you going to do to me?" he sighed after a while.

"Do to you?" Now it was her turn to be confused.

"Yeah. Are you going to punish me or send me away?"

"What? Ty, don't be ridiculous."

"It's _not_ being ridiculous," he mumbled.

Ember rested her hands on his shoulders, coming to stand behind him. Ty went rigid, sitting up and away from her. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" he laughed. "Everything's wrong."

"Why?"

He stared at her. "Because… because…"

"Give me one good example of how everything is wrong."

"You know now. About me… about my…"

She sat down beside him again. She wished that she were better at comforting people, but it had never been her strong suit. The only thing she could think to do was to rest her hand on his leg. "I know, and I don't judge you for it."

"Yeah, right," he scoffed. "You think I'm an idiot. You think that I'm insane. You think that I was 'being ridiculous.'"

"Ty, I don't think that you're an idiot. You aren't insane. And you weren't being ridiculous. You were doing what you knew to do to cope. Like you've pointed out to me, no one ever taught you better. It seemed like the only way, didn't it? And you didn't think that anyone else could understand that."

"I didn't want them to stick me on some pill. Sky… he threatened to tell somebody that I'd… that I'd done it, and I knew that they'd take me away."

Ember stared at him. "You… you thought that they'd take you away?"

"To the asylum. But I'm not insane."

"They wouldn't take you to the asylum! A therapist would have come to talk to you and help you find another way to deal with whatever was going on. If you didn't want to take a pill or something, then I don't think they'd make you, as long as you stopped hurting yourself. A therapist is supposed to help you, not get you locked up for as long as possible. They're not lawyers, for crying out loud!"

His eyes were fixed upon her face in shock. "Help me?"

"Help you."

"As in… Wait a minute. 'Help' is not 'lock Ty up in a straightjacket,' right?"

"Holy Herobrine, Ty, you're not insane! You just… just made a decision that maybe wasn't the best."

He shook his head. "I don't believe you."

Ember stared at him, and then caught his shoulders, leaning him down so that his head rested in her lap. Ty didn't resist, but stiffened slightly. "Why not?" she asked.

"Because I… you can't accept me. Who would?"

She smoothed his hair, feeling oddly protective as he lay there, his green eyes shining, the flecks of red easily visible. "I would. I do accept you. You're… you're my friend."

"Even though…?"

"That's in the past, Ty. You won't do that again."

"It's addictive," he whispered. "It's so hard to stop."

"I won't let you do it again." She slipped her hand down to his neck, sensing him go rigid under her fingertips. He smelled… smelled incredible, the dark, warm aroma of pine soothing and intriguing all at once. "I'm going to help you."

"I've never wanted help," Ty sighed, and she could feel his voice coming up from under her hand.

"Maybe you need it."

He didn't respond, except for with a stiff, sharp nod of his head. "Maybe." Ember ran her hand up under his jaw, feeling the tight muscles of his mouth. His eyes tracked her every move, watching her warily. "Why do you care?"

"Because you need someone to care."

"That's not an answer," he scoffed.

"Yes, it is."

"It is not."

"It is!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!" she growled, defensive without really knowing why.

Ty laughed then, his real, mischievous laugh. "That's too much fun."

"What is?"

"Driving you crazy." With that, he rolled to his feet, scampering out of the room before she could punch him.

* * *

><p><strong>Geez, Ty really doesn't have a self preservation instinct if he likes annoying Ember. Sorry 'bout the late update, I am currently afflicted with a serious case of the relatives. And I know what's going to happen...<strong>

**ME TOO!**

**Brain! What have I told you about interrupting me?**

**BUT I KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO SETO AND TO JA-**

**Silence!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: <strong> **"Appreciated" by Rixton. I love that band...**


	12. Library (Ty)

Ember had found out. Somehow, that knowledge didn't bother Ty as much now, as much as he'd thought it might. In fact, he almost felt… relieved. She was watching out for him now, and as often as he proclaimed his independence when it came to taking care of himself, it wouldn't be exactly unpleasant to have her there for him.

Of course, Ty would never admit this out loud.

Looking around, he realized he didn't know where he was. There were books, books, and more books, all on shelves that reached towards the vaulted ceiling, which seemingly stretched away to infinity. The rows were spread far apart, at least five meters. A title from one of the highest shelves, at least thirty meters up, caught his eye, glittering silver emblazoned on a blue binding. _Amor Omnibus ad Lunae Lumina_. He didn't speak whatever language it was, but the book caught his eye just the same.

Grabbing a torch from one of the brackets on the wall, he wandered deeper into the library, marveling at the architecture and at the sheer size of it. There were so many books here, it was surely enough for an eternity's reading. All of them looked to be different. As Ty went further down the hall, he found slightly more disturbing artifacts. A human skull glared down at him from one of the shelves, and a mouse scurried out of his way.

Passing another shelf, he paused to remove a book. It was bound in a soft material studded over with hard chunks. Scales. Dragon scales. The book's cover was made of dragon skin. It was a beautiful pastel lavender skin, a color that he'd never have guessed dragons came in. The scales were small and delicate, almost the size of flower petals. It smelled strangely familiar, almost sweet.

Driven by a burning curiosity, Ty opened the book to the first page. The text was clearly handwritten, in a crabbed, sharp style. It was hard to read the writing, and, bored, he thumbed through it rapidly, expecting to find nothing of interest.

Instead, he came to a sketch. It was a drawing of a skeleton, except with… wings. There was a caption next to the picture, which Ty struggled to read. _For further study._ Whoever'd written the book had clearly finished studying more, because on the next page was a diagram of a pentagram, with specific instructions that only someone like Seto could ever hope to understand. The next two pages were taken up by a giant map of what Ty recognized to be the Overworld. There were several villages marked on it, and one was circled and labeled '_A likely candidate._'

The next fifteen or so pages were filled with notes, which Ty skipped through until he came to the next illustration. It was of a small human girl playing with a young boy. She was running with a smile on her face, and he was laughingly trying to catch her. On the next page, the girl was crying on a doorstep. One side of the house appeared to be cut away, and Ty could see two people, possibly the girl's parents, who were eating something and smiling. The boy was on the next floor, asleep in his bedroom.

Ty stared at the little girl for a while. She looked so familiar… When he skipped to the next drawing, he stopped cold. There was an image attached to the page; it appeared to be a family portrait of the same family as before. And the little girl…

Someone had inked in a sketch of wings onto the girl's picture. And they'd labeled the girl, too. _Specimen one: Emma Grey._

Emma… with wings… Ty's mind was racing. The boy… he looked familiar. The boy… the boy was the boy he'd seen in the simulation, Ember's brother Seth! So that meant… that the girl was Ember. Emma Grey. That had been her name?

His breath was coming fast and shallow as he tried to make sense of what he'd just found. Ember… someone had chosen her as a specimen for some experiment. Who had written this? What experiment were they doing? And why? Why did they need a little girl? Ty needed time, time to keep reading.

A noise came suddenly, off down the hallway. Ty wrapped his wing around the book, concealing it quickly before extinguishing his torch and tiptoeing down the hallway. He was about halfway to the door when he heard another noise, this time much closer.

"What are you looking at?" Seto asked, tapping him on the shoulder. In the span of a second, Ty had jumped in panic and pinned the intruder to the ground. "Ow! Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" he groaned. "Get off, Ty! Y-you're hurting me!"

"Oh! Seto! Sorry!"

"Don't ap-p-polog-gize, just g-get off-f, you id-d-diot!" Seto pleaded. Ty obeyed and moved off of his prisoner. "Geez, you act like someone just gave you an electric shock."

"You startled me. Sorry," Ty mumbled again. Seto slowly began to pick his way to his feet, wincing with every movement. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh, nothing, just looking up spells. What about you?"

"I think Ember's not happy with me," he said, feeling a prickling sensation at the back of his neck, hoping that Seto didn't press for more details.

"What did you do?" the sorcerer asked, bracing himself against one of the bookshelves.

"I… I guess I explained how much I like annoying her." That was part of it.

Seto gaped at him. "Why would you like annoying her?"

Ty knew he was blushing and shook his head angrily to try to dispel the pink flush that was creeping over his face. "Because… she gets so cute when she's pissed off. Her eyes get super intense, and her tail starts twitching, and she… I don't know, but I love it."

"You're weird," Seto told him. "Ember being pissed off is not good. It's not cute. And it's only a little bit funny."

"So you admit it's funny."

Seto blinked. "Let's keep this conversation to ourselves, yes?"

Ty smirked at the sorcerer. "Sure."

"Good," Seto said, seeming relieved. "So… yeah."

"Yeah what?"

"I was just saying it."

"No, you didn't say 'it,' you said 'yeah.'"

**_Very clever. Can I borrow that sometime?_**

_Sure._ Ty grinned.

"Damn it, Ty, you know what I mean!"

"I do?"

Seto yanked at his own hair in anger, and then yelled in pain. "Ah! Yes, you do!"

"Fine. Maybe I do."

"I hate you," Seto muttered.

"Good to know."

"You—" He broke off, shaking his head disgustedly. Ty watched with amusement. "Never mind. I'm just _done_."

"Done with what?"

The sorcerer's glare was filled with such rage that Ty took a step back. "YOU."

Oh. Seto was _really_ ticked off. "Sorry," Ty sighed. "I'm just bored."

"So you intentionally annoy everyone you meet?" Seto quirked an eyebrow into a quizzical expression.

"Pretty much, yeah."

"You do realize that that's not exactly the best method for coping, right?"

"It works," he said shortly, reminded of his conversation with Ember.

"I see. You know, you could just say that you need something to do."

"Direct solutions are overrated."

"Look, do you want to go be un-bored?"

Ty rolled his eyes. "Is that a technical term?"

"Yes," Seto said, completely deadpan.

"Fine. How do I get un-bored?"

"Hold still. I think this spell should work… I mean, I've been reading about it…"

He stared at Seto, backing away slowly. "Whoa. What are you doing?"

"Teleporting us. If it works."

"Stay away from me!"

"No, chill, Ty, I mostly know what I'm doing!" Seto grabbed his arm, and then everything went black.

* * *

><p><strong>Oh dear me, what is Seto doing? And... what was that book?<strong>

**I KNOW!**

**I know you know, brain! Shaddup!**

**I DON'T WANT TO!**

**I'll get Zariah to come!**

***Silence ensues***

**Thank you. Also, important announcement!**

* * *

><p><strong>IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT:<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>This story is coming to an end soon, and I thought a Q&amp;A might be cool. Do you guys have questions? Send them in! I might not answer them all, especially creepy stalker questions, but I'll try to answer some!<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Dangerous" by Big Data<strong>


	13. Falling (Ty)

When Ty opened his eyes, he realized that he was in a prison. And… Sky! Jason! They were here! "Guys!" he shouted, jumping to his feet.

He promptly fell over, at the same time Seto screamed in pain. "Ow!"

"What happened?" Ty asked. A twinge of pain had just shout through his ankle.

"Look at our feet."

He followed the sorcerer's directions and gasped. "You fused us."

Seto had, indeed, fused Ty's left foot to Seto's right foot. Between them, they now had three feet. "Oops," the brunette whispered. "I thought I knew the spell, Ty, I'm sorry! I don't know how to fix this, so we'll have to get Herobrine to do it later. Holy shit, I'm so, so, so, so, so sorry!"

"Ty?" Jason said disbelievingly.

He whipped his head around. "Jason!"

His friend pulled back. "Wha… no. You're not Ty. What are you? Who are you?"

"Jason, it's me!"

"You're working with Seto! And Herobrine! You can't be Ty!"

"Jason…," Ty pleaded. "Seto, stand up on three. One, two, three."

They managed to get to their feet, and Seto leaned against Ty for support. The sorcerer was incredibly frail, he realized. He could feel every single one of his ribs. "Well, maybe I do know a spell— ," the sorcerer started.

"No," Ty told him. "No more spells for you."

"Sorry."

"I'll _make_ you sorry."

"Sorry!" Seto whimpered. "I feel awful!"

"Ty… Oh, Notch, it really is you, isn't it?" Jason choked.

"It's me," Ty agreed, limping to the bars.

"Ow!" Seto yelped as he fell over once again, twisting his ankle. "Ty! Stop walking without warning me!"

Jason edged closer. "Your eyes… they're green. And you have wings. And a—"

"A tail. I know. Please don't mention the tail."

"No, I was going to say you have a cowardly rat superglued to your ankle." Jason curled his lip.

"I heard that!" Seto snarled from his position on the floor.

"I don't care!" Jason called back.

"And it's not superglue! It's a magical side effect!"

"You mean you failed. In your special way. And I take it you aren't denying the cowardly rat bit?"

"Augh! Shut up!"

"Guys, please don't get into a fight," Ty begged, stepping between them. Seto gasped in pain as Ty dragged him across the floor.

"Fine, but only because I don't pick on helpless prey," Jason sniffed. Sky, who Ty hadn't really noticed until then, was simply staring at all of them, looking to be in some kind of shock.

"I heard th—"

Ty hissed. "Seto?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up. Seriously."

"Fine."

"Thank you." What had happened to make Seto and Jason hate each other so much? Oh yeah. Seto'd tortured Jason. Ty felt uncomfortable at being caught between them. Jason was his best friend, but… even though Seto was evil, he was… maybe Ty's friend. And Jason didn't seem to like Ty anymore. But Jason was still his best friend… _Oh, Notch, this is so freaking confusing._

Being confused made him hungry. When had he last eaten? Was it after the simulation… or before flying… or before that? He didn't know when he'd eaten last.

Ty wrinkled his nose at a sudden smell. It was… an incredible scent, like roasted meat and warm blood and_ it_ _was delicious_. He leaned closer, following his nose. Ah. It was coming from right in front of him, and so good.

It was prey, he realized. And he hadn't eaten in at least a day. No. Longer. Ty caught the creature's shoulders, and it stiffened. Its mouth moved, but he didn't care, because the scent was overpowering. He wanted to eat his prey, and he growled as the creature strained against his grasp, trying to escape. But even that only made this more enjoyable. After all, who wanted to eat something that didn't fight back?

He pulled the prey towards him, catching scents of its fear. Ty couldn't stand it any longer and leaned forward, sinking his teeth into the creature's shoulder. Fresh blood gushed over his teeth and down his throat, and he growled again, this time in satisfaction. Dimly, he was aware that his prey was crying out, and that made him want to preen in delight at what he had done. He'd caught something that fought, and overpowered it. He moved back in preparation to deliver a killing bite.

"Eguire!" Ember shouted. "Stop it!" Somewhere, in the distant back of his mind, he wondered what she was doing here.

**"I'm hungry,"** Ty protested, but he refrained from biting the creature, which was struggling.

"That's no excuse to eat Jason!"

Eat… Jason? _Eguire!_ Ty screamed. _What are you doing?_

**_I… oh. I was hungry._**

Ty stared at Jason, who was shaking from the pain and fear. "Jason. I didn't mean to… Oh no. Oh no. I didn't… I wouldn't… I couldn't have… I didn't…" Jason didn't answer, just trembled, pulling away. Ty turned around and saw Ember gazing at him sympathetically. "How did you—"

"Get here? Well, I teleported. How did I know you'd be here? I can sense fluctuations in magical energy all throughout the End and realized that Seto had used a spell here, and then guessed you'd be with him. How did I know to come here? You haven't encountered humans besides Seto yet, and anyway, Seto doesn't smell quite as appetizing as most humans. You wouldn't have known how to resist Eguire's instinct to hunt humans."

Ty stared at her for a few seconds, and then turned back to Jason. His shoulder was bleeding, and his eyes were wild with fear and pain. "Jason…"

"T-Ty," his friend sobbed. "It's… you're really g-gone. Y-you're one of the m-monsters like h-her."

"I—no!"

"You are," Jason said, tears running down his face and cutting through the grime. "You are, and I've lost my best friend, and I'll n-never, ev-v-ver get you back!"

"Jason, it's still me! That was an accident! It won't happen again! I'm so sorry!"

Jason was crying loudly now. "I hate this place! I HATE IT!" he screamed.

"Please, don't hate me!" Ty wept, falling to his knees.

"I don't hate you! But you're g-gone!" Jason slid to the floor and moved to the edge of his cell. He slipped his hand through the bars, and Ty clasped his fingers in his own. "You're gone," Jason whispered, pressing his forehead against the thick iron rods. His blood was pooling on the floor, along with his tears. "Damn it, you were my best friend. And now you're a monster."

"I'm not a monster," Ty said, tears falling down his own face. "I'm not. I'm not a monster."

Seto raised his hand then. "If this isn't a bad time, could you please _stop_ dripping snot on our foot!?"

Ty barely heard him. Ember came and wrapped her arms around him, stroking his neck soothingly, but he barely felt her soft touch. Jason was crying, and that was all he cared about. "I'm sorry," Ty repeated, over and over and over again, his lips fumbling, smearing the words into one long, drawn out sob of pain and misery.

Jason was shaking and pale, and the pool of blood on the floor was growing larger by the second. Looking closer, Ty could see that his teeth had left huge rips in Jason's skin and muscle, even to the point of exposing the gleaming white bone. "Emma," Ty began, knowing that Ember hated the name but not caring, "can you heal him?"

She hesitated. "There's only one way I could heal him. The way I healed you."

"It's not th-that bad," Jason said hoarsely. "I'll live."

"Let me put a bandage on it or something," Ty begged. "Please, Em, do you have anything I could use?"

"I can take care of Jason," Sky said stiffly, unfolding himself from the corner. "I don't think he wants you near him."

"Sky!" Ty choked, staring at his older friend desperately. "He's my best friend! You two are my best friends!"

Sky looked at him, taking in Ty's wings, bloodied fangs, talons, and his tail. "I don't even know you anymore," he finally said.

"Sky?" No. This couldn't be happening.

"You… you're a _traitor_."

And then Ty was moaning in pain, rolling on the ground and crumpling and trying not to cry as a scream of agony rose from his throat. He didn't think he'd ever stop wailing, stop howling the hopeless, shattered cry. And the last thing he knew before he blacked out was Ember's arm catching him, and him throwing himself into her embrace and screaming against her neck, screaming and begging for the pain to end. He wanted to die.

* * *

><p><strong>Aww, come on. Of course I had to make a joke about #Ty'sLeftFoot. Here's a thought exercise. Think about the person nearest to you. Then think about their foot being fused to yours.<strong>

**And also, poor Ty!**

**I KNOW WHAT HA-**

**We've heard.**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Backstabber" by Ke$ha<strong>


	14. Stitches (Ember)

She watched from her position on the foot of his bed as Ty's long eyelashes fluttered and he moaned in his sleep. Ember didn't know whether to wake him or let him keep sleeping.

_"Kill me! Make it stop! I don't want to be a monster anymore!"_

His hands twitched.

_"Ty, shh, you aren't a monster."_

_"Kill me, Emma! Please! They hate me!"_

Ty whimpered again, and Ember felt pity rise up in her throat. Why did Seto have to be such a good-natured idiot? He'd only meant well, but she'd had to detach his foot from Ty's by teleporting them apart, make sure Jason didn't bleed to death, and convince Ty to drink a sleeping potion. All because the scrawny brunette sorcerer was extremely skilled at causing maximum chaos in minimal time.

_"They hate me!"_

_"Ty, Ty, Ty, just relax, it's okay, you're okay."_

_"I'm a t-traitor!"_

Ty sat up with a strangled scream. "No!"

"Ty," Ember murmured, pushing him back down towards the bed. "Just stay calm."

"I… they hate… they don't… they aren't…"

"Shh," she soothed him softly. It was all she could think to do. _Where's Wisp when I need her?_ Ty lay still, letting Ember pull his bangs out of his eyes.

Now he looked at her, his eyes bloodshot. "Em. Emma Grey."

Ember froze. "How do you—No. I don't use that name anymore."

"Why not?" Ty asked. His eyes were sliding closed again.

"I just don't."

"You should use it, Emma Grey. It's a beautiful name." His eyes were shut by that point. "Beautiful like you," he whispered, his voice so soft that she almost missed it.

"What?" Ember gasped, staring at him. But Ty was asleep again.

She slid off the bed and ran down the hall, feeling as though something was running around inside her stomach. _Zariah?_

**_Yeah?_**

_Did you eat any small live animals, by any chance?_

**_Give me _****some****_ credit._**

Ember mentally nodded, but was too lost in thought to say anything. What had Ty meant? Surely he'd only said it because he was half asleep and currently had the mental processing power of a walnut. That had to be it. He was just too exhausted from everything he'd been through to filter his thoughts.

But that meant they were his thoughts.

She shook herself. What did it matter? He thought she was pretty. So had almost all of Team Crafted when she'd been in her human form. Anyway, she didn't even care what Ty thought about her. Totally. Totally didn't care.

"Ember!" Aradyn shouted, almost colliding with her. "Seto says Jason is… is hurt!"

"He is," Ember said. "I put a bandage on the cut."

"Can you teleport me there?" she pleaded, her eyes hopeful. "I want to… to…"

"To kiss him?"

Aradyn blushed. "That's not what I was going to say…"

"But it's the truth."

* * *

><p>They appeared in the prison hallway. Sky flicked his gaze over Ember for a second, and then stared at the ground. Jason was lying on the floor, blood soaking the bandage completely and the red fluid still dripping.<p>

"Oh, Herobrine, he's really hurt," Aradyn muttered. "We need to take care of him, Em."

"Yeah." Ember snapped her fingers, creating a black gateway. She and Aradyn stepped through it into the cell.

"H-hey, Ara," Jason choked, raising his head slightly.

"Where are you hurt?" she asked, crouching beside him.

"Sh-shoulder," he groaned.

Aradyn glared at him. "Idiot human. You need to get the injury above your heart; that'll slow down the bleeding. Otherwise it won't stop. Sit up!"

"T-tired," Jason protested.

"Yeah, you're tired because you've lost so much blood. You wouldn't have lost so much blood if you'd been sitting up."

"So th-this is all m-my fault?" he mumbled with some degree of a mutinous tone. Ember stifled a grin as Aradyn huffed and pulled him upright. Jason somehow ended up leaning against her shoulder, which neither of them looked unhappy about. In fact, it could have been said that both parties appeared quite satisfied with the arrangement.

"Hold still. I need to get a look at the cut."

"N-not a cut. Bite," Jason told her.

"How'd you end up bitten?"

"Th-through s-special powers of awesomeness," he stammered, coughing slightly.

Aradyn shook her head and tugged at the bandage, exposing the gaping cuts. So maybe Ember should have put in some stitches. Oops.

"Ember! You just… put a bandage on this?!"

"I was on a tight schedule?" she offered.

Jason stiffened as Aradyn jabbed the cut with her finger, trying to figure out how deep it was. "Th-that hurts."

"Sorry! Instead of standing around being useless, you could get me a needle, Em. He needs stitches."

"S-stitches?" Jason yelped.

"It's a serious cut, Jase. Just relax."

"H-how can I rel-l-lax when you're ab-b-bout to stick a n-needle in my arm?"

"I think she means relax, or she'll stick it somewhere else," Ember told Jason, earning a glare from him. "Hang on a second; I'll go get it."

* * *

><p>Ember appeared back in the house. Wispice had a sewing kit somewhere… She bolted up stairs and crashed into something warm and solid.<p>

Ty caught her easily. "You," Ember exhaled, breathless, "are supposed to be asleep."

"Yeah, well, I'm not," he said tiredly, his voice hoarse. Ty looked awful—his hair was one giant mat, his eyes were bloodshot, his face was swollen from crying, and tear tracks were visible in red lines that had been irritated by the salt. "Where are you going, Emma Grey?"

"Damn it, Ty, my name is Ember! Call me Ember!"

"As you wish, Emma Grey," he taunted. She felt her heart start to race as he squeezed her wrists tightly. What was he doing?

"Stop it," she growled at him.

"Are you annoyed? You shouldn't be annoyed."

Ember tried to pull away from Ty, but he was stronger than her. Stronger, and three damned, no good, completely evil inches taller. "Let go of me!"

"Your tail's twitching. That means you're mad."

"Yes, it does! Let go!"

"I've heard that a cat's tail twitches when they're scared. Are you scared?"

"What would I be scared of?" she scoffed, struggling against his iron grip.

"I'm not sure," he said. "Are you scared of me?"

"No! Go away!" Ember tried to step on his foot.

Ty laughed. "This is my therapy."

"What?" She was so confused that she forgot to be angry.

His teasing manner was waning rapidly. "You know. For losing all of my friends."

"How is pissing me off a _therapy_?"

All of his energy seemed to vanish. "Because it takes my mind off of my stupid life." He dropped her wrists and turned away.

"Ty…"

"What? You aren't here to talk to me, are you?" Ty said, sounding almost wistful.

"I… I have to get a needle for Aradyn."

"Why can't she get it herself?"

"She's trying to keep Jason calm. We need to sew up his shoulder."

Instantly she knew she'd said something wrong, because he slumped. "He's bleeding. This is all my fault."

"You couldn't help it," Ember sighed.

Ty slid to the floor and looked up at her like a small, guilty puppy. "Jason's terrified of getting stitches. In fourth grade, we were doing parkour, and he slipped off one of the platforms and scraped his arm. I had to take him to the nurse, and the whole time he was yelling at me to not because he was scared that they'd try to sew the cut up. And then in sixth grade he really did have to get stitches, and… and the nurse had to get me to hold him down, and then Jason didn't speak to me for the rest of the day. After that I told him he was being a wishy-washy bastard, and then he threw a book at me and we were friends again." He paused, apparently lost in the memories. "I wish that that could fix this. I wish that he would just throw something at me and we'd be okay again."

"He'll come around eventually, Ty."

"You don't believe that," he said quietly. "You should go. Make sure he's okay. Jason's still my best friend, even if he hates me."

"He doesn't hate you. He just… Humans are scared of things that they don't understand."

Ty blinked. "It's not only humans."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm scared of… of me. I'm a monster. I mean, I'm like you. I hurt people. I hurt my friends. We're both… we're both things out of nightmares."

Ember stared at him. "So that's it. I'm a nightmare."

"I mean… No, wait, Em!"

She bolted around him and into Wisp's room, not caring that Ty was calling for her. Where was that damn sewing kit? She'd wasted too much time already.

Ah. There it was. Ember grabbed the needle and a spool of thread and snapped her fingers to create a portal.

Right before she jumped through, she heard Ty crying softly to himself.

* * *

><p><strong>Er... Merry ChristmasHanukkah/Festivus/Yule/Kwanzaa *goes on listing winter holidays for hours***

**I felt the need to give you guys a very sad chapter. Yup. Aren't I lovely?**

**Don't forget to send in questions for the Q&A, which will be at the end of the book, which is in... hmm... not many chapters!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Carol of the Bells"<strong>


	15. Tie The Knot (Sky)

Sky watched Aradyn and Jason with a slight sense of amusement. Jason was somehow sitting in her lap now, with his head on her shoulder, and he was looking positively thrilled about it.

What he was less than thrilled about was the prospect of getting stitches. "D-don't w-want stitches," Jason complained to Aradyn.

"Oh, Jase, don't worry. You're going to be fine."

He was actually shivering slightly, Sky realized. "Ara, I'm s-scared. I d-don't want st-stitches. Is there anyth-thing else y-you could do?"

There was a slight popping sound, and Ember appeared with a needle and thread in hand. "Got it."

Jason's eyes went wide. "N-no stitches!" He struggled to sit up, and Ember caught him.

"Jason, calm down," she ordered.

He looked positively frantic. "No!"

"It's okay, Jase," Aradyn soothed him. "Just lie down and hold still. It'll be over in a minute."

Screaming, he writhed in Ember's tight grasp. "I don't want stitches! I d-don't w-want stitches!_ I don't want stitches_!"

Well. This was interesting. Sky watched the spectacle with some amount of curiosity. Who knew Jason ever freaked out? And about something as small as stitches, too. "Jason!" he called.

"Sky! H-help me! I d-don't want to g-get stitches!"

"You're going to bleed to death if you don't get stitches, idiot," Sky reminded him.

"I don't want stitches!" Jason shrieked; his eyes were huge, the size of dinner plates, and he was kicking and twisting violently. He had to be running on pure adrenaline at this point, since he'd lost so much blood. Oh Notch, if Jason bled to death because of his own idiocy, Sky would never let him live it down.

"Em, hold him down, will you? I'm sorry, Jase," Aradyn told him as he gasped in terror.

"Damn it, Jason, quit trying to bite me!" Ember growled as she pushed him over so that he was lying on his back. He arched under her hands, still writhing and screaming. She caught his arm and shoulder, pinning his upper body down. Jason was sobbing in panic at this point, shaking like a cornered animal.

"S-Sky! H-help me!" Aradyn picked out a thread and pulled it through the needle, and Jason looked like he might faint from fear. But then, he had lost a lot of blood. That could be part of it. "S-Sky!"

"Jason, you just have to relax, okay?" Sky said, getting up and walking closer. Ember stiffened as he sat beside her, and he tried to suppress a pang. There wasn't time now to try to apologize for what he'd said. "Trust me."

Jason looked at him. "C-can't relax. S-Sky, m-make them s-stop!"

"I can't do that. Just keep looking at me." Slowly Aradyn started to move the needle towards Jason's shoulder. He twisted around, and Sky heard him hyperventilating at the sight. "No, Jason, don't look at the needle. You need to keep looking at me."

Reluctantly Jason turned back, and Aradyn started the first stitch. He winced and cried out sharply as the needle passed through his flesh. "S-Sky…"

"Shh. It's alright. You're safe."

He gasped a little at the next stitch, and sobbed a little as Aradyn tugged the edges of his skin together. "It hurts."

Ember squeezed Jason's arm gently. "It'll be done soon." Sky tried not to get jealous, and failed miserably.

Twenty-five stitches and five minutes later, Aradyn tied the knot at the end of the thread. "It's over," she told Jason, and he sat up and laid his head on her shoulder. She looked delighted at that. "That wasn't too bad, right Jase?"

Jason didn't answer, because he was already asleep. Ember watched them, and Sky saw the tiny half-smile that crept over her lips.

Aradyn grinned at her. "What're you looking at, Em?"

"You. You look like a smitten idiot."

"Maybe I am a smitten idiot," she smiled, rubbing Jason's neck and back.

At this, Sky couldn't stop the sensation of triumph. "I knew you guys were flirting! I just _knew_ it!"

Jason flicked his eyes open. "What's this about flirting? And why is Sky shouting about it?"

His face grew hot. "I wasn't shouting."

"Yeah, you were." Jason leaned against Aradyn, and he closed his eyes again. Then he fell over into her lap, and promptly snapped awake. "Ow. Well, this is awkward."

As he started to sit up, Aradyn held him still. "Careful. You're too weak to be moving, Jase."

He looked at her for a minute and then nodded slowly. "You're probably right. Yeah, I don't think I want to move."

They were flirting. They were flirting so much that Sky could hardly believe that they hadn't kissed already. They should kiss. Damn it, he wanted them to kiss so he could antagonize Jason about it later. It was tempting for him to go and shove their heads together. So very tempting.

"Good," Aradyn said as she stroked his hair. Jason grinned and let her.

_Kiss already, you idiots!_

"I'm glad you approve."

While they flirted shamelessly, Sky slid a little closer to Ember. "Hey."

"What?" she asked coldly.

"I'm… sorry about what I said yesterday. You didn't deserve that, and I was being a jerk. So I'm sorry."

Her purple eyes took him in, searching him from head to toe. Then she turned away tiredly with a sigh.

Sky tentatively put his arm around her shoulders. Ember tensed but didn't move. "Are you okay?"

"Why would you care?"

"Because… I just do, Em."

She still didn't look at him, so he began to rub her neck gently, hoping… He didn't know what he was hoping for, but he knew he couldn't stand this. She fluttered her wings almost shyly and turned just enough to peer at him from the corner of her eyes. "None of this was supposed to happen," Ember whispered. Sky caught the scent of jasmine coming from her and closed his eyes, barely listening. Oh, Notch, she smelled fantastic.

His nose bumped something, and with a jolt he realized that he'd leaned forward and was pressing his nose against her neck, unable to get enough of the scent. Ember flinched away from him. "Sorry," Sky mumbled. "You just…"

"What?"

"Never mind," he said as she pulled away, breaking their contact. "What did you mean? Earlier, I mean. Well, you knew what I meant." Sky wondered if he was rambling. Knowing himself, he probably was.

"You wouldn't understand." Ember stood up abruptly. "Aradyn. We need to go."

"Hello there," said a soft and silky voice. "I hope that I'm not interrupting anything."

Slowly, almost against his will, Sky turned and stared into the face of Herobrine.

* * *

><p><strong>Well... first off, that #Jadyn though. And second off, dun dun dun, what's Herobrine doing there?<strong>

**I KNOW, DARN YOU! I KNOW!**

**Yes, well, thank you for that, brain.**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Beggin' For Thread" by Banks. Best. Song. Ever.<strong>


	16. Pins And Needles (Ember)

**The majority of this chapter is about torture. You've been warned.**

* * *

><p>Ember looked at the god. To his right stood Seto, who was absentmindedly fiddling with a strand of his chocolaty hair. To Herobrine's left… On Herobrine's left Ty slumped against the wall, staring fixedly at the ground as though willing himself to disappear into it.<p>

"I think it's high time that these three learned to join me," Herobrine continued, indicating Jason, Sky, and Mitch, who was still unconscious from the aftereffects of Seto's spell.

"Can I please be the one to torture Mitch?" Seto asked, looking excited. So they were here to convince Sky and the others to become hybrids. Ember had to agree, it was about time.

Herobrine looked at him coldly. "No. Be silent."

The sorcerer whitened considerably and nodded. Aradyn glanced between them. "Torture?"

"It appears to be the only way to convince these humans. Reason does not seem to enter their little minds."

Jason sat up from where he'd been leaning against the wall. Aradyn had moved him there so that he could rest better, probably. "Reason? You call it reason? Seriously, if it was _reason_, I'd listen. I'm not blinded enough by what I _think_ to hide from whatever the truth turns out to be. But you haven't spoken a word of reason, not a single one, in the entire time you've had me stuck in this stupid cage."

"Your pointless defiance achieves _nothing_, human. Ember, Aradyn, Seto: escort the three humans to the chamber. I have something special planned for today. And for tomorrow, and the day after. The humans _will_ be broken."

Ember nodded and caught Sky's arms, holding them behind his back as Herobrine unlocked the cell. Reluctantly, Aradyn had done something similar to Jason.

Seto, however, had had much less success. Mitch's unconscious state made pushing him along unfeasible, so the sorcerer had tried to pick him up. It didn't go well, as Mitch weighed probably twice as much as the scrawny, pale brunette. "Umm, Ara? A little help here?"

"There is no need," Herobrine said icily. "Tyler. Go assist Seto."

"My name is Ty, and I don't take orders from you," he snapped, looking up to glare into the god's pupilless, brilliant white eyes.

"Interesting. Then Eguire, go assist Seto."

Ty tensed. "No—ah!" He gave a scream of pain as, for probably the first time, his two personalities came into conflict for control of his body. His fists were clenched, and his jaw was tight. "Stay—my head—augh!"

Ember bit her lip. She knew how this felt. The flashes of mental electricity as countermanding thoughts collided, the struggle of being sure what was you, the fear of losing yourself and all control to the other entity that lived inside of you… it was painful and terrifying and a horrible experience. She felt a sudden impulse to run forward and hug Ty, hold him and soothe him and tell him that everything would be okay, that soon Eguire would release him, and that he should have just listened to Herobrine in the first place. But no, she was supposed to be restraining Sky, and Herobrine was watching, and… It was a completely ridiculous thought anyway, and Ty didn't like hugs.

Suddenly, with slow, lurching steps, Ty's body walked forward and stooped to lift up Mitch. **"Where shall I go now, my lord Herobrine?"**

"To the torture chambers," the god said, sounding pleased at Eguire's victory over Ty. "Follow me."

Sky walked along without resisting, though he dragged his feet, slowing his and Ember's progress until they lagged a few feet behind the others. "What are you doing?" Ember hissed at him. "You'll only make things worse."

He swallowed hard. "You don't have to do this," he finally whispered. "Em, you don't have to listen to him. You don't have to be evil."

"You're the one who brought this on yourself," she reminded Sky. "Now keep moving."

* * *

><p>Ember stepped into the torture chamber, and felt a shiver run through Sky as he looked at the walls, which were spattered with blood. Knives covered one wall, and a cabinet filled with what Ember knew to be all manner of potions stood beneath the knives. Three tables sat in the middle of the room, each one with thick leather restraints. The tables were padded slightly so that the prisoners didn't hurt themselves in their useless struggling.<p>

"Seto. Wake up the human, if you would," Herobrine said. It wasn't a request, though. It was an order.

The sorcerer nodded perfunctorily and snapped his fingers. Mitch opened his eyes with a gasp of pain as the burns that covered him suddenly flared to life. "T-Ty! W-what are you d-doing here? W-where am I? W-why d-does everything _hurt_ so m-much?"

"Eguire, restrain him."

Ty's body nodded and dragged itself forward to the nearest table, placing Mitch down and strapping down his arms. A band wrapped around his chest, and then another around Mitch's forehead. His legs were all that could move, and Ty soon took care of that by tying down Mitch's ankles. **"Done, my lord."**

"Thank you. If you would allow Tyler's mind to regain control—"

**"Yes, my lord. But his name is Ty."** With that, Eguire released Ty's mind. He swayed and fell to the floor with a groan, clutching his head. "What just—oh, damn it, Eg!"

Herobrine chuckled at the sight. "Ember, Aradyn, please place the humans where they belong."

Sky struggled against Ember as she led him towards the table. He managed to step on her foot, and she hissed in pain. "Stop it."

"Let me go!" Sky snarled, twisting desperately. "I'm not going to just go quietly!"

Herobrine smiled then. "If you aren't going to be quiet on your own, human, then you leave me with very little choice. Ember, hold Adam down, please."

Sky cursed and tried to pull away again, but it was futile. Ember forced him to the floor, where he sat, chest heaving and fear flickering in his eyes, as Herobrine approached, binding his arms behind his back. Sky didn't say anything, but Ember could sense his mounting terror.

"Excellent," Herobrine smiled. "Tyler, I would like you to come here and assist me."

"With what?" Ty snapped. "Torturing Sky? Yeah right."

The god raised an eyebrow. "Your disobedience is disheartening. I believe that I'll have to teach you a lesson. And perhaps we can demonstrate a new technique to Seto. Lie down on the table, Tyler."

Ember wondered if she might be sick. "You're going to tor—"

"I am going to _discipline_ him," Herobrine reminded Ember. "Obey me now, Tyler, or your punishment will be far worse."

'Do it,' Ember mouthed to Ty.

'What does he want?' Ty mouthed back.

'You need punished. Do as he says or it will be bad.'

"Fine," Ty spat, walking over to the empty table and lying down. "Let's get this over with."

"How brave of you. Ember, please apply the restraints."

Ember nodded, feeling Ty's heart race as she strapped him to the table. "Not so tight," he whispered. "It scares me."

Herobrine stepped forward, tilting Ty's head back experimentally. "That would work best," he said to himself quietly. "Yes." He leaned back the piece of the folding table that had Ty's head attached to it, exposing his throat. Ty didn't struggle, but took a deep, shuddering breath. "Now, Ember, gag him if you would. I dislike loud screaming before dinner."

She complied, wrapping a scrap of cloth over his mouth tightly. Ty met her eyes, and she flinched at the intensity of his green gaze. "Done," Ember said quietly, looking away from his stare. She couldn't watch his eyes while this happened.

"Very good," Herobrine praised her, drawing a long, sharp-looking needle from his pocket. "Ember, I want you to use this and stab him right about here." He indicated a spot on Ty's pale throat. "Not too deep, or you could quite possibly kill him. And don't miss. You might pierce one of the arteries."

"You want me to do this?" she asked, somewhat shocked.

"Of course."

"I…" Ember met Ty's damned green, gorgeous eyes, and tried not to shudder at what she was about to do. He was completely at her mercy, she realized with a tingle. His life was in her hands. She could slip up and kill him.

**_Oh dear. Would it be bad if I were to interrupt?_**

_You wouldn't dare._

**_Would you like to bet his life? I could just move your hand, and… poof, he's dead._**

_Shut up. Right now._

A small shiver wracked Ty's body as she lowered the needle, scratching the surface of his throat. "Right here?" Ember whispered.

"Precisely there," Herobrine said. "Seto, come here. I want you to watch this." The sorcerer walked over slowly. Ember glanced at his inscrutable brown eyes and wished she knew what he was thinking. "Tyler, I want you to remember that this is what happens when you disobey. Do it now, Ember."

Ember raised the needle, and Ty shivered again, looking at her with his bright green damn gorgeous eyes. Her hands trembled.

She couldn't do it. She couldn't stab Ty. She just couldn't do it.

But she made herself bring the needle down in an arc, stabbing perfectly through the scratch in his throat. The strong sinew of his windpipe was hard to pierce, but her momentum carried her through, stopping perfectly before piercing the other side of it. Ty's back arched, and his hands clenched at the table's sturdy sides. A soft groaning sound came from under his gag, and tears filled the green oceans of his eyes. The end of the needle was still visible from where Ember stood, green blood trickling out from where it was planted in Ty's neck.

"Very good," Herobrine murmured again, picking out another needle and handing it to Seto. "Your turn. Right here." He again indicated a small spot on Ty's throat.

Seto looked up at the god, his eyes huge. "Stab Ty?"

"Stab Ty," Herobrine confirmed.

"You mean… stab _Ty_?"

"Yeeess," Herobrine growled. "Right now."

The sorcerer looked at Ember nervously. "Seriously? Why are we stabbing Ty?"

"He disobeyed Herobrine," she explained, as patiently as she could be. Yes, it would be painful for Ty, but he had to learn to listen.

"So we're stabbing Ty?" Seto asked tentatively.

"YES! YOU BLITHERING IDIOT!" Herobrine roared.

Seto jumped and covered his face, actually shaking in fear. "S-sorry. I-I'll do it." He raised a shaking hand and stabbed down at Ty's throat.

As though in slow motion, Ember saw that he was going to miss the mark. She could sense that the needle was going to hit the artery along Ty's jaw, saw that Seto's hand was trembling too hard, knew that Ty was about to die. And she couldn't let it happen.

Ember flung out her hand and intercepted the needle. Its point slid through her skin and skidded across the bone, and then pierced through the other side. The tip of the needle hovered a millimeter away from the skin of Ty's throat, and everyone's eyes were on her. Seto looked horrified; he'd realized where the needle would have landed. Ty looked like he was about to pass out, which was completely understandable. Herobrine stared at Ember in shock.

Aradyn appeared at Ember's side. "Are you okay?"

Ember nodded, unable to talk. Tears were running down her face, and she took hold of the needle, screaming in pain as she dragged it through her hand and out the other side. "Ah!"

"Oh, ew, that's disgusting," Aradyn said, turning a very delicate shade of green at the sight.

"Oh man. Oh man oh man oh man I am so dead," Seto whimpered. "I didn't—I didn't mean to—I just—"

"Seto," Ember called, stopping him. "I'm not going to kill you. Relax. You were just nervous."

"Y-yeah. Just n-nervous. And I almost k-killed T-Ty."

"Why did you do that?" Herobrine asked, cutting over them both with his low, hoarse tone. "_Why did you do that_?"

"Seto was going to miss," Ember whispered. "I kept him from missing."

"You…" The god broke off, shaking his head.

Ember looked down. Ty had tears of pain running down his face, and his breathing was raspy. He moaned softly as he realized that she was looking at him. "It's okay," she soothed him, undoing the strap around his head, taking away the away the restraints until he was free. "Don't move, Ty, or you'll hurt yourself." She gripped the needle with her uninjured hand and gingerly removed it from his throat. With a choked sob Ty slid off the table, clutching his hand to the puncture so that he could breath.

"He hasn't finished his lesson," Herobrine said mildly.

"He's hurt," Ember told the god, stepping towards Ty and letting him lean against her shoulder. His hand still covered his throat, but his breathing appeared to have eased somewhat. "He needs to rest."

"Nonsense. I specifically designed that technique so that there would be minimal recovery time."

Seto blinked. "Uh… it's actually pretty draining. It takes a while for you to catch your breath after the needles. Ty really does need to rest."

Something wet ran down the side of her leg, and Ember pulled down the long sleeve of her shirt to cover her bleeding hand. It hurt a lot, but she must have forgotten about it in her preoccupation. Herobrine's white eyes narrowed. "You're hurt."

"Yeah. I'll take Ty to the house. Then I'll get bandaged up and come back," Ember offered.

Herobrine waved it away. "No. I'll call for Rosewing and Wis— never mind. Wispice would be ineffective in this situation. I'll simply teleport Rosewing here. You should rest."

"Okay," she sighed gratefully, clutching Ty's hand and teleporting away.

A pair of hands clenched around her neck, choking her.

* * *

><p><strong>Oh man. I just spoil you guys, don't I? Over 2,000 words in this chapter. Feel special.<strong>

**On a side note, I do need to tell y'all about something. There is a pretty cool story that I've been into called Unexpected, by orchidlove123. Vair cool story, although *sobs* she hasn't updated the sequel in two weeks. WHY ORCHID?! WHY YOU DO DIS TO ME?! Anyway, you guys should check it out!**

**Also, I just need to say, you literally do not know how much it means to me to have the support of all my readers. I've had so many times where I have no clue what to write, and then I come with an idea, and it's risky and I'm scared to try it, but I know I'll have support if I branch out of my comfort zone. I've grown so much as a writer. Thanks guys!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Grenade" by Bruno Mars<strong>


	17. Kiss? (Ember)

Ember gasped for air, feeling agony burning behind her eyes as she choked. Ty… Ty had her by the throat. She had to get… had to get… to get away… get away… away… away… away…

He pressed her against his chest, almost hugging her as he strangled her. "C-can't b-breathe!" Ember coughed, and Ty released her instantly, following her as she scrambled out of his reach.

"Oh shit, Em, sorry!"

"S'alright," she mumbled between huge, heaving gasps. He came and wrapped his arm around her, and she could feel him trembling.

"Thanks for saving me," Ty whispered. "And I was trying to hug you. Not kill you."

"Glad to hear it," Ember sighed, resting her head on his collarbone. "Just don't try to hug me again."

A small smile broke out across his tired features. "Y-yeah," he promised.

They sat together like that for a while, and Ember forgot to care that her hand was bleeding. She forgot to care about the world, actually, and it felt good to do that. It was nice to not have to be worried about everything, to not think, to not do, but just to be. Existing was good.

After a time, Ty spoke again, his voice low and hoarse. "Do want to move somewhere a little more comfortable?"

"I don't want to move at all," she admitted, taking in a huge breath of his soothing pine scent.

"You don't have to." Ty picked her up and carried her to the couch. Ember stretched out sleepily and looked up at him. "But you do have to make room for me," he reminded her.

"This is my couch now," she announced, smiling at his indignant expression. He was so cute when he got frustrated; his eyes narrowed and he pouted adorably.

"Share?" he pleaded. Oh Herobrine, when he pouted—

"Nope," Ember smirked, stretching out to take up as much room as possible. A small detail occurred to her, and she frowned. "Didn't you—isn't your throat hurt?"

"Not anymore." At her confused expression he continued. "I'll explain once you move so that you take up less than ninety percent of the couch."

"No, you'll explain now, and then maybe I'll move."

Not again! He was still pouting, but his lips quirked up at the ends as he tried to resist the smile. It dimpled his cheeks, making him even cuter.

Wait, had she just though that Ty was cute?

"If you won't move, then I guess we'll both have to live with it." Ember smirked triumphantly at Ty's apparent capitulation, and then her grin faltered as he pushed her against the edge of the couch and flopped down next to her. His arms snaked out around her waist and caught her before she could fall off. "Now are you going to move?"

"You play dirty," she muttered, shoving uselessly at his chest. He didn't budge, and she twisted within his grasp, trying to escape. Her efforts were in vain, and served only to make him laugh. "And shut up."

"I didn't say anything," Ty grinned. "Now, hold still if you want me to explain how I'm fine."

"No. How about you explain if you want me to not punch you?"

In less than a second he'd flipped her over and caught her arms, poising himself over her easily. "Try and punch me now."

"Damn it."

"You know, this hybrid thing has sort of grown on me. Wings are cool. Being taller is cool. I like being super strong. The only downside is—"

"The tail?" Ember suggested.

He used his to slap her lightly, making her squeak in surprise. Since when did she squeak? "No." Ty took a deep breath and sighed, falling back down beside her. All of his energy seemed to vanish during that exhalation. "Tails aren't so bad. It's… it's everybody being gone, Em. Abandoning me. Now you're pretty much my only friend. But… I miss… look, Jason's been my best friend since forever. I just… Emma, how did you deal with losing all your friends?"

"I didn't have friends. Just a brother. And he was dead before I became a hybrid." Ember said it as quickly as she could. She wasn't going to spend more time thinking about it then she had to. Because last time she did, she'd ended up sobbing all over Ty. And that wasn't going to happen again.

Ty grew quiet and thoughtful, and then his hand slid up to her shoulders, rubbing her back in slow circles. She leaned into his touch before she realized what she was doing and then went completely still. Oh Herobrine. As long as she didn't start purring right now… "I'm sorry," he murmured. He smelled amazing, and she was leaning close, pressing her nose against his neck…

Ember sat up swiftly, and he sat up with her, watchful and wary. _No. No more sniffing Ty_, she told herself firmly. "You smell like pine needles," she informed him.

"You smell like jasmine." She must have looked confused, because Ty elaborated. "Jasmine. It's a really pretty, really awesome-smelling flower. I think it might be my favorite."

"I smell like flowers?"

"Yep. Do I seriously smell like a pinecone?"

"Not a pinecone. A pine tree. There's a difference."

"Whatever. Either way I feel ridiculous," Ty groaned.

"It could be worse. You could smell like a rose and completely hate them."

"Rose?" he asked with a grin. "She hates… roses?"

"Mmhmm."

The conversation dwindled away, and Ember rested her head against his arm. Ty's cheeks were slightly pink, she noticed. The blushing brought out the green in his eyes, making them even more intense than usual. His free hand toyed with her hair, although she couldn't guess what he could possibly be doing with just one set of fingers available to him.

His arm was warm and soft and good. Ember considered falling asleep. Then she considered kicking herself. Why was she being so stupid? But it felt so nice right here, sitting next to him. Ty was an extremely comfortable pillow. But why was she being such an idiot around him?

"That kid who was in the simulation with us—he was your brother, right?" Ty asked abruptly.

"Yeah."

"He said you poisoned him. I know you didn't, but… how did your family die?"

"In a fire," Ember said stiffly. "And I don't want to talk about it."

Ty nodded. "You know, if you ever do want to talk… I'll listen."

"Thanks," she muttered. "Did you make that offer knowing that I'll never take you up on it?"

He considered it a moment. "Yeah, but I can't help hoping you will."

"Why?"

"Because sometimes we just need to tell someone and talk it out. It can help." Ty slid his arm out from under her to braid her hair better, his eyes narrowed with concentration. Ember let her hand rest lightly on his leg, and a pale pink flush once again crept onto his face.

"Why are you blushing?"

"I'm blushing?" he asked, and the pink tinge upon his cheeks turned scarlet.

"Very much so."

"Well, shit." His entire face was crimson now, and Ember trailed her fingers across the side of his leg. Ty smacked her hand. "Stop. That tickles."

"Deal with it," she smirked, and then she was tickling him, and Ty was giggling like a three-year-old, and he fell over as she attacked him, both of them grinning widely. He lay on his back and she leaned over him, tickling her helpless prisoner as he laughed.

"M-mercy!" he begged, twisting around and flailing in the throes of tickle-induced laughter. Ember did not want to give him mercy.

"Nope."

"D-damn it, Em!" Ty wailed, still giggling. Ember started to laugh at his miserable expression, and he took advantage of her distraction to slip out of her grasp. "That was mean!"

Ember couldn't stop laughing. "Y-your face," she choked.

An evil glint appeared in his eyes. "You think it's funny, do you?" He pushed her over onto the couch, and then he was tickling her.

"S-stop!" she giggled. She was _giggling_? She _never_ giggled. But here she was, sounding like she was in kindergarten.

"Not until you surrender!" Ty declared, tickling her fiercely.

"I—I surrender!" Ember shouted laughingly, and Ty grinned as she tried to get her breath back, still hovering over her. Small, spasmodic giggles still erupted from her, and she felt blood rush to her cheeks as he laughed at her. "Let me up, you idiot!"

His eyes sparkled—she'd never seen them so green before. The red flecks glinted like crystals in the stained glass of his irises. "What if I don't?" he asked playfully. Ty was leaning over her, so that there were only ten or so inches between them.

She was barely able to breathe. It was as though his very presence was stealing her breath away as effectively as he had during his ill-fated attempt at a hug. "Then you'll be sorry," Ember muttered. He smirked down at her, apparently unconcerned.

"I'm sure I will," he teased.

"I hate you," she sighed, pushing at his chest.

"Of course you do," Ty smiled. His hands were on the couch on either side of her so she couldn't escape, which made her feel slightly tense. At the same time, though, she didn't mind too much. Ty leaned a little bit closer, and for a bizarre second, Ember thought that he might be about to kiss her.

And then the moment had passed and he'd moved to the side, releasing her. Ember stood up and felt a twinge of pain coming from her hand.

He must have seen her flinch, because Ty's expression instantly flashed to concern. "What—Oh. Your hand. Damn it, Emma, why didn't you remind me?"

"I'm not Emm—" she started to protest, and then stopped. Ember realized that he'd been calling her Emma this entire time. So what did it matter, really? "Fine. Call me Emma if you must."

A small smile played with edges of his lips, bringing back his adorable dimples. "I'm glad to have your permission, but I'd do it anyway."

"I know," she groaned.

He smirked. "We should get that wound cleaned up." He put his arm around her shoulders, guiding her towards the kitchen.

A thought occurred to her as she let him steer her there. "How are you not hurt?" Ember asked. He'd never answered her! It didn't make sense that he was fine, after having a needle planted in his throat.

"I'll explain if you let me get you food other than popcorn. You need to start eating healthier."

"Fine. I'll eat brownies."

"You know what I mean. You need real food."

"Brownies are real food."

Ty shook his head. "No. I hate to break it to you, but brownies are not real food."

Ember stared at him in shock. "What?"

"Come on. You have much to learn from the master of cooking."

* * *

><p><strong>HAPPY NEW YEAR! I had so much fun writing this. Especially their tickle fight. #noregrets<strong>

**I've noticed some fighting in the comments- apparently there exists such a thing as "Emberlox?" I have no idea what that's about. None whatsoever. *Is trying desperately to keep a straight face* Oh snap. Did I accidentally add a love triangle?**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Innocence" by Avril Lavigne<strong>


	18. Silently (Sky)

**Again, this chapter is primarily about torture. Nothing too graphic. May I take a moment to say that torture is a disgusting thing that should never be done? Oops, I just did.**

* * *

><p>Sky felt his heart flutter as Herobrine turned his attentions back away from Jason and to him. He would have screamed, or said something insulting if he could have summoned the courage, but he couldn't do either. After all, the first thing Herobrine had done after Ember and Ty left was order Aradyn to stitch his mouth shut.<p>

He tried to not move his mouth, because every time he did, the thread cut against the holes that the needle had pierced in his flesh, sending a new wave of blood running into his mouth and down his throat. He had to swallow it since there was no other way to get it out of his mouth.

"Seto," the god called softly. Sky tried to turn and look from his position on the table, but could only see the edges of Seto's cloak.

"Yes?" Seto whispered.

"Examine Adam's injuries for me. Estimate how much pain he is in, from a scale of one to ten. I don't think we'll be able to _ask_ him."

Seto's footsteps drew nearer, and Sky flinched as the sorcerer touched him lightly on the neck, where the epicenter of the burns was located. Even the soft weight of the finger felt like it would burst through the tender, swollen blisters that covered him. His fists clenched tightly at his sides, and he forced himself to take a deep breath, letting it out slowly. In. Out. Try not to scream. In. Out. Try not to scream.

"I don't know. What are we comparing to?"

"Perhaps to what you yourself experienced."

Seto winced so hard that his hand slid across the burn on Sky's neck, sending pain shooting through him. Oh Notch. It hurt _so much_. "I s-suppose s-so," the skinny brunette mumbled.

"Well?"

"I'd say a six," Seto decided after a minute, and Sky wanted to sob. This was a six? A _six_? It felt like… maybe a sixty.

"Thank you, Seto. Well, Adam, it appears that we have some work to do."

He couldn't even protest that Adam wasn't his name anymore, because of the stitches in his mouth.

"Where should I start?" the god murmured to himself. "Ah. I think we should begin with your face. You'll enjoy what I have planned for you, I'm sure. You'll want to _scream_ with delight. Cry from happiness. Yes, I'm sure you will."

A piercing wail drew all of their attentions for a moment. In one of the side rooms that branched off the main chamber, Jason was being tortured by Rosewing, and it wasn't a quiet business. "Make it stop, make it stop, make it sto-o-op!" he sobbed loudly. There was a loud bang, and footsteps emerged.

"He's out for now," Rose announced. Though the words were nonchalant, Rosewing's voice shook a little.

"What did you do to him?" Aradyn whispered.

"Eh, a little of this, a little of that. Any more and it might have driven him mad, so I had to stop."

"I'll go check on him. I mean, I need to check for injuries. Yeah. That's it." Sky heard soft footsteps as Aradyn swiftly walked towards the room where Jason apparently lay unconscious.

"I'm going to kill you all as soon as I freaking break out," Mitch snarled into the suddenly quiet room.

"My young irrational human, that is simply impossible," Herobrine sighed. "I cannot die."

"I could hurt you."

"I cannot be harmed by any conventional method."

"Then I'll kill Seto."

The sorcerer laughed, an ugly, cruel sound. Sky missed the old Seto—the one who didn't try to turn Mitch into a living torch. "You? A pathetic human? You might have stood a chance once, but I could kill you in moments now. And guess what? It only takes a second for me to make… you… _pay_."

Mitch screamed as Seto's spell took effect, doing something Sky couldn't see. A giggle erupted from Seto, and then another and another, until he was completely hysterical, sounding as though he might choke on his own laughter. And all the while Mitch was screaming.

It seemed as though it would never end, like the screaming would never stop. It had to have been going on for… for at least a full minute, and judging by the snickering that still came from Seto, the sorcerer didn't intend to stop anytime soon.

"Seto," Herobrine said after a while. "Enough. You might kill him."

"He'd deserve it!" Seto shouted.

"Stop this instant!"

"I won't!" Seto screamed. Sky caught a glimpse of his face—the sorcerer's eyes were bloodshot, and spittle flew from his lips as he spoke.

Then there was a loud crack, and Mitch's cries of pain subsided to a low groan. Seto fell to the floor and out of sight, but Sky could hear him whimpering. "Get up," Herobrine ordered, low and vicious.

The sorcerer scrambled to his feet. As Herobrine made a sudden movement towards him, Seto yelped, throwing his hands up over his face. "I'm sorry!"

"Pathetic," the evil god spat. "If you resist, I swear that I will make you suffer ten times worse. And remember, if you scream…"

"If I scream you'll give me a reason to." Seto recited the words like he'd said them a thousand times, closing his eyes and shuddering.

"Eyes open, Seto," Herobrine commanded softly. The sorcerer obeyed hesitantly.

The god's hand snaked out and touched Seto's arm, making him flinch. A red glow surrounded Herobrine's fingers, and then a horrible animal noise started to come from the scrawny brunette as he pressed his lips together, trying clearly to hold back a shriek.

"Are you going to scream? You want to scream."

Seto's face was very white, and he paled even more as Herobrine began to stroke his hand over the sorcerer's arm, leaving red, blistered burns. At first they bubbled and healed into nothingness, but as the god repeated the action, the blisters stayed longer and longer. Sweat beaded over Seto's forehead, and he trembled.

"You want to scream _very_ much," Herobrine taunted. "It would help you to release a bit, wouldn't it? Take away a bit of the edge of the pain? But you can't scream."

The low whimper resumed in Seto's throat. His knees were buckling, and Herobrine's free arm caught him, the same red glow flaring to life as he used his other hand to add to the torture. Seto's lips parted into a soundless howl. "P-please. S-stop," he choked out.

"Wouldn't it be so easy to scream? But you can't." Herobrine's face was contorted into a smile that was really more a baring of his fangs as Seto shivered. "Don't you want to? Doesn't this hurt?"

Sky couldn't watch any more of it. He turned away as far as he could, and caught a glimpse of Aradyn as she stood against the wall. She was supporting Jason and watching the tableau with hard blue eyes that were like chips of ice. Jason was slumped against her, his eyes unfocusedly aimed at the floor. Sky could see no physical marks on him except for a few cuts that oozed thick, dark blood.

Aradyn leaned forward and said something softly into Jason's ear. He looked up just as Seto screamed a few words in some forgotten language and a huge explosion rocked the room. Sky whipped his head around to see that the sorcerer had broken free of Herobrine and fallen against the floor. As Herobrine stepped forwards, Seto spat another phrase, throwing up his hands, and a second explosion went off, releasing a cloud of smoke.

When the gray smog had cleared away, Sky saw that Herobrine had been blasted backwards. His neck was at an unnatural angle to his body, and he hoped desperately that somehow Seto had killed Herobrine. But that would be impossible, and anyway, the god had already climbed back to his feet. His neck cracked back into place, and murder blazed in his eyes. "You dare to attack me, mortal?"

Seto opened his mouth to cast another spell, but all he could manage was a heroic little squeaking noise as Herobrine advanced.

"You are going to die. Painfully. And when your spirit settles into the Nether, I will be certain that you spend eternity suffering. When I can, I'll visit you. And you'll wish you could die a second time." The god reached down and, grabbing Seto by the throat, lifted him into the air, ignoring his frantic struggles. Seto's nails raked at Herobrine's hands, and he kicked at his chest, but to no avail. Herobrine slowly tightened his hold, literally squeezing the life out of him.

"Stop," Jason whispered, bracing himself against Aradyn.

Seto was now as purple as Ember's wings, and his kicks grew weaker. His arms hung limply by his sides.

"Stop," Jason said, a little louder this time. What was he doing? Surely he didn't think that Herobrine would listen.

"I can feel your life force getting weaker, mortal," Herobrine growled. "Are you prepared to die?"

"Stop!" Jason shouted, staggering a few steps forward. Aradyn caught him around the waist before he fell onto his face, holding him upright as he swayed.

Herobrine turned to contemplate him, still holding Seto by the throat. The sorcerer sputtered weakly, tears of pain gathering in his eyes. "I am afraid that I don't take orders from you."

"I'm not that stupid," Jason muttered. He raised his voice. "I have a bargain."

"What could you possibly give me?"

"Set him down, and we can talk." The strong, self-assurance of Jason's words was belied by the fact that he couldn't stand without support.

"He dies first. Then… we may come to an accord." Herobrine turned back to Seto, who had stopped moving except for feeble spasms that might have been attempts at kicking the god.

"No!" Jason almost fell over; once he steadied himself against Aradyn, he cleared his throat. "I mean, no. We talk now, or not at all. Set him down."

Herobrine narrowed his eyes. "You had better please me with this _bargain_, human, or you will pay the price." Carelessly, he tossed Seto against the wall. His head snapped back against the stone with a sickening _crack_. Sky thought for certain the sorcerer must have died from the impact, but though his head lolled to the side like a rag doll's, his chest rose and fell softly.

Jason looked around, and Sky had known him for long enough to see that he was probably about to throw up. "Uh…"

"What are you offering?"

"What you want. My soul," Jason said, his voice cracking slightly. "I know you want us to join voluntarily. I'll do that."

Sky stared at him. What? No. Jason wouldn't—he couldn't—Just no. Herobrine blinked rapidly and then conjured a chair beside Aradyn. "Set the human there. I'd hate for him to fall unconscious while we discuss this… proposition."

* * *

><p><strong>Jason, WHY?! Bad Jason! Very bad Jason! Not cool! Even though I'm the one writing this thing. I KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO YOU, JASON, AND YOU'RE GOING TO- Wait. I can't tell anyone yet. Dangit. But it will be awesome. <strong>

**Remember, guys, send in questions for the Q&A at the end!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Survivor" by Destiny's Child. <em>I'm a survivorI'm gonna make it/I'm a survivor/Keep on survivin'!_**


	19. Tricky Things (Sky & Ty)

**Yes, I did change my name. Nafia7Ate9 is a coolerer name. Deal with it.**

Jason slid gratefully into the chair, though he winced every time he touched anything. Sky couldn't get over that Jason would—that Jason would become a traitor. No. It wasn't right. Not at all.

"Now. You said a bargain. What do you want in exchange for your soul?" Herobrine asked softly.

"You to let my friends go. You need to let Mitch, Sky, and Seto return to the Overworld. There, Seto can face the consequences for what he's done."

The god stared at him for a few seconds, and then began to laugh. "You have greatly overvalued yourself, Jason. I advise you to tread wisely, lest I grow impatient."

Sky stared at them, trying to get Jason's attention. He wanted to yell at the idiot that this was not a good idea, that there must be another way to escape, that he didn't want to lose another of his closest friends to a monster.

"That's my bargain," Jason said stiffly.

"Is it?" Herobrine challenged, voice filled with menace. "Are you sure?"

Mitch suddenly cried out in pain, and Sky saw out of the corner of his eye that Herobrine had removed him from the table and was supporting him with a hand around his waist and a knife under his chin, tilting his head back slightly. His chest was rising in shallow, scared catch-breaths as Herobrine pressed the blade against his throat.

"Here is my bargain. You'll join me. I'll promise upon my honor that I will _not_ kill Mitch, Adam, or even Seto. If you don't agree, then this human"—he shook Mitch roughly—"dies."

"J-Jason, d-don't," Mitch coughed.

"You're bluffing," Jason decided.

"I can assure you that I am not."

"Still bluffing."

Herobrine looked at Jason coldly. "Would you like me to modify my terms, to possibly… speed up our bargaining?"

"What?" Jason asked, surprise showing for a split second on his tired, gaunt face.

With a quick motion, Herobrine flicked his wrist, slitting Mitch' throat. He screamed, falling to the floor. "How about this? If you join me, I'll heal him. If you don't, then you can watch him die."

Jason's mouth was frozen open in horror. "You can't—"

"On the contrary, it will be extremely easy for me to let him die."

"But—"

"In the grand scheme of my plan, I can always find another human. There are quite a few of you out there, after all."

Jason looked like he was on the edge of a panic attack. He'd completely lost control of the situation, and knew it. "I—I don't—I can't—I—"

"That looks painful," Herobrine commented. Mitch had clamped his hands over his throat so that he could still breathe, but the puddle of blood grew larger by the second.

"I—You have a deal."

"Swear to it."

"I swear that I will not resist when you shove a dragon into my head. That I'm on your side," Jason promised. No. No, no, _no_. Sky wanted to punch him. No. _Jason, you can't!_

"Your loyalty is touching," Herobrine said coolly. "Aradyn, Rose, escort him back to the house. Take Seto too. Keep them there until I arrive."

They moved to follow his orders. As Jason was being led out of the room, he turned around. "Aren't you going to heal Mitch?"

The god chuckled. "Naïve human. _I_ didn't swear."

* * *

><p>Ty stared at Jason as Aradyn half carried, half dragged him into the room, setting him down on the couch. "Shh, Jase, it's okay."<p>

"He's dying! He's probably already dead!" Jason shouted, struggling to escape Aradyn's hold. The blonde dragon hybrid locked her arms tightly around him, speaking in soft, soothing tones that held so much tenderness that it made Ty feel like he was watching something he shouldn't be.

Rosewing staggered in a moment later, dropping Seto into a chair. The sorcerer gasped in pain, struggling to sit up, but failing. Ty saw large black and blue bruises on his throat, and every breath he took seemed to cause him pain.

And then Jason was sobbing loudly, burying his face into Aradyn's shoulder and crying all over her as she hugged him, and Seto screamed in pain as Rose poked his arm experimentally, and Ember was trying to talk to them, and it was _so much noise_. "EVERYBODY SHUT UP, RIGHT NOW!"

It didn't work as well as he hoped. Jason still sniffled, and now Aradyn was glaring at him. Rose pointed out, "_I_ didn't say anything," and proceeded to poke Seto again, which resulted in another yelp of pain from the brunette, who was trembling by this point. Ember raised an eyebrow at him.

"Did you really think that would work?"

"I had my hopes," he muttered.

"It works better if you're me." She took a deep breath. "GUYS! AND GIRLS! PLEASE SHUT UP SO THAT WE CAN FIGURE OUT WHAT THE NETHER IS GOING ON!"

"But I like poking Seto," Rose said reasonably.

"It's hurting him, so stop!" Ty growled. He tried not to think about Jason.

"Aww, Ty, you're so hot when you're yelling." Rosewing laughed at his stunned face.

"Stop flirting with him," Ember ordered her sharply. "Aradyn, why is Jason here?"

"He's joining us."

"And why is he crying?"

"Em… Herobrine killed Mitch," Aradyn explained in a rush. "Jason, you're choking me. Please stop." Mitch was… dead? Ty felt the blood drain out of his face, making him feel light headed.

"S-sorry!" Jason whimpered, hugging her closer and bawling even louder.

"Anyway, Jason tried to bargain with Herobrine, and… Herobrine said that what he wanted was too much, and tricked him into swearing an oath. Jason thought that Herobrine would heal Mitch, but Herobrine lied. Jason, you're still choking me."

Jason crawled into her lap, and sat there, leaning his head on her shoulder. Ty still couldn't believe that Mitch was dead. No. He wasn't dead. He couldn't be dead.

"Herobrine must have had a reason," Ember sighed.

"Emma, he lied to Jason, and… and hurt Mitch," Ty told her disbelievingly. Hurt, not killed. It was simply unacceptable that Mitch was dead.

"Again, he must have had a reason. Why is Seto crying? And holy shit, Rose, stop poking him!" Ember snapped crossly.

"Fine," Rosewing groaned. "Seto's crying because I'm poking him."

"You know what I mean," Ember growled, her tail lashing. Her hair was floating down past her shoulders in an extremely frizzy river of purple.

"Seto was prat enough to disobey Herobrine, and Herobrine punished him with pain magic or some shit. Then he _attacked_ Herobrine, and Herobrine was going to kill him, but Jason stopped him before he finished strangling Seto." Rose cast a dispassionate glance towards the sorcerer. "I wouldn't want to be him when Herobrine finishes what he started."

This discussion wasn't the one that needed to be happening. "Em," Ty started, "Herobrine was supposed to heal Mitch! He lied!"

"_He had a reason, Ty!_" she snarled. "Just lay off, will you?"

He caught her shoulders, and she hissed. "I am _not_ going to lay off, because you're smarter than this. 'He had a reason' is not a freaking answer. Just think for a second, will you?" Ty ordered Ember in a low, hoarse whisper.

"It is an answer!" she whispered back furiously.

"It is not, and you know it!"

"Let go of me!"

Ty felt a growl of frustration rise up from his chest as he released her. Ember pulled away, glaring at him. "What did I do?"

She blinked, as though confused. "I—just leave me alone."

"Hey, guys! Aww, Jason and Aradyn are so adorable!" Wispice announced as she skipped the last three steps, jumping to the floor and landing lightly. "But why is Jason crying?"

They explained as much as they could to her, and Wispice stood there for a moment.

"He… lied? And killed Mitch?"

"Mitch might be alive," Ty muttered. _Please let him be alive._

**_I thought you two didn't get along so well._**

_Whether that's true or not, he's still my friend, Eg!_

**_Then I'm sorry._** Ty felt a strong rush of affection from the dragon's mind, wrapping around him warmly.

_It wasn't your fault._

**_I know that._** There was an image in his head of being wrapped under a wing, tucked against something strong, steady, and soft. The feelings of protection and warmth and _love_ that flowed so strongly from Eguire's mind to his soothed him.

"Eh, Mitch looked like he was hurrying up with the dying business, Ty," Rose said, shrugging and interrupting Ty's train of thought.

"Oh dear, Seto looks hurt!" Wispice had caught sight of the sorcerer and ran to sit down on the arm of his chair. Seto shrank back as her hands moved towards his throat so that she could examine the bruising.

"N-no t-touching," he choked out, making himself as small as possible.

"Seto, you need someone to help you. I won't hurt you," Wispice promised. "Okay?"

"J-just n-no t-touching me," he whimpered again, more insistently.

"I think he might be a bit traumatized," Rosewing offered.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Aradyn muttered.

"Guys, let's try to focus. So Herobrine is going to be here in a little while to get Jason, right? And if Seto is paralyzed by terror of _us_, how do you think he's going to react to seeing Herobrine?" Ember waited for a response but got none. "Exactly. Seto, I know you don't want to be touched right now, but we're going to have to carry you upstairs, because I seriously doubt your ability to walk.  
>"And then, guys, we need to figure out what we're going to do to calm down Jason. I think everyone but Aradyn should leave him alone for a while. Sound good?" She glanced around the room.<p>

Everyone muttered a variation of "Yes," except for Seto, who was trembling, and Jason, who didn't react whatsoever, which is to say he kept sobbing all over Aradyn.

"Great. Ty, can you help me with Seto?"

So after their little fight, Ember wanted his help? "Fine," Ty sighed as everybody except for Jason and Aradyn filed slowly out of the room.

Ember gingerly lifted up Seto's torso, while Ty caught his feet. The sorcerer moaned in pain, gritting his teeth every time they took a step upward. "Shh, Seto, it's okay," Ember murmured as they set him on his bed. She stroked his hair for a while, ignoring his terrified shuddering. Ty watched from the doorway, an odd pressure in his ears. He shook his head at his own foolishness.

He had no right to be jealous of her paying attention to Seto. Seto needed help, after all. And anyway, Ty didn't like her like that. He just… well, she was beautiful, and there was no way of getting around that, but she was just a friend. And for crying out loud, _she worked for freaking Herobrine and had a psychopathic dragon in her head!_ So why in the Nether would he be jealous?

Ember suddenly looked at Ty. "Get me a healing potion."

"I don't know where—"

"C-cabinet," Seto mumbled.

"Right." Ty yanked open the cabinet and pulled out the familiar red bottle, unstoppering it on the way to Ember.

"Thanks," she said with a sharp nod of her head. "Seto, you need to drink this."

"D-don't w-want—" Seto started, but was cut off as Ember poured the red healing potion into his mouth, earning a glare as he swallowed. Instantly the bruise on his throat looked like it was days old, some of the edges having faded to yellow.

"Go to sleep," Ember told him as he tried to sit up. She took a blanket from the foot of the bed and wrapped it around his shoulders. Seto looked like he wanted to protest, but as Ember pushed him back down so that his head rested on a pillow, he clearly thought better of it. His eyes fell shut as Ember slid off the covers and returned to stand by Ty.

"Why'd you need a healing potion?"

"I think he had a concussion. And they're mild sedatives, too. I mean, if I was better at healing, I'd have tried to save the healing potions, but I'm not good enough to know what I'm doing."

"Mmm."

"Are you okay?" Ember asked finally, timidly. "I know you were… friends… with Mitch."

"Am I okay? No. I'm not okay. I want to punch Herobrine for what he did. Mitch didn't deserve to die, Em, and Jason doesn't deserve to think it's his fault, because it isn't. Do you know what it's like to feel like someone lost their life because of you? It's not good. It makes you feel awful about yourself. Damn it, Emma, I wish that he was alive, and not just because he was my friend. Because Jason's my friend, too, and no one should have to have that kind of guilt."

Ember went silent for a moment. "I could…"

* * *

><p><strong>WHY EMBER? WHY THE CLIFF HANGER? Also, this was over 2,000 words! And also, I'm getting a YT account soon! And also, I say also a lot! And also, whose POV would you like to be in the next chapter? Jason? Sky? Seto? Jerome? Ian? The fish? Anyone else? TELL ME!<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Magic" by Coldplay.<strong>


	20. Shtuff Is Back (Derp Ian, Seto, & Jason)

Ian watched curiously as Jerome ran around the house, banging his head against walls and screaming "Why?" at the top of his lungs.

'Y' made him think of the alphabet. The alphabet song! "ABCDEFG, HIJKLMNOP," he started to sing, and then broke off, feeling himself pout. "Jay-Jay! Why aren't you singing?"

"Two Derps in a day! It isn't fair! _WHY?_"

"No, Jay-Jay, Q is next! Silly Fluffy!"

Jerome groaned. "Bonks! Fish! Get in here! Please!"

"What's a Bonksfish?" Ian asked. "It sounds like… the name of a boat! A ship name!"

"Ian, put your glasses on," Jerome whimpered pleadingly.

"I know ship names!" he announced, rather than put his glasses on. Ian didn't want to put his glasses on. "I know Skylox! That's a good name for a ship! Then there's Merome! Jay-Jay, is that the name of your ship?"

"What are you even talking about anymore?" Jerome sobbed, burying his head in his hands.

"Oh, Fluffy, don't be sad! I have more ship names! Ssunkipz! Truelox! Skynadian! And Setolox!" Ian wasn't sure where the names were coming from, but he knew they were good names for ships. And boats! "Jay-Jay, boats and ships are the same things! So you can have a boat and a ship!"

"Do you know what I want more than a boat?"

"A ship?" Ian suggested.

"No, Ian, I don't want a ship!"

"But then why do you want a boat? They're the same thing!" Ian focused hard, trying to think of what Jerome might want. The answer hit him like a ray of sunshine bursting through cloudy skies. Sky! Wait, no, he was thinking about… "_CAKE!_" Ian shouted joyfully. "The Fluffy wants _cake_!"

* * *

><p><em><strong>Meanwhile...<strong>_

* * *

><p>Seto lay with his eyes closed, feigning sleep as Ember and Ty shut the door behind them, still talking in low, hushed tones as they descended the stairs. As soon as they were out of earshot, he let go of the pained sob he'd been holding in. Everything hurt.<p>

His throat ached horribly, and though Em had given him the healing potion, which he'd have to hug her for once he felt better, breathing felt like trying to get an air bubble to the bottom of a jar of molasses. The back of his head hurt, too, from where Herobrine had thrown him into the wall. The fresh burns on his arms, and the ones on the rest of him, too, all throbbed and stung.

Herobrine would come back. This time, he'd either kill Seto, or stop worrying about whether anyone heard and torture him until he was a sobbing wreck. The mere thought made Seto want to turn himself into a mouse and hide under the bed. Of course, Herobrine would still find him. He always did, no matter what Seto did to try to hide and escape.

He'd been a fool to join Herobrine, but there was no going back once you joined the god of evil. Now he was stuck here, a prisoner who'd betrayed his friends to join the warden. Seto was sure that they wouldn't care if he died, and they'd probably laugh if he was tortured.

If he could get to the Overworld or to the Aether, he'd stand a chance. Herobrine was completely mortal in the Aether—the further a god went from their home dimension, the weaker they became. However, Seto had no chance of getting to the Aether, and anyway, it wouldn't exactly be paradise if he did. Notch would imprison him for working with Herobrine. Imprison or kill.

But Seto knew that was preferable to whatever Herobrine would do. If Notch chose to kill him, it would be a quick and painless death, and though after that his soul might fall to the Nether where Herobrine could make good on his promise to torment him for eternity, at least the god wouldn't get the satisfaction of killing him.

And if Notch chose to imprison him, Seto would be completely fine with that. The Aether god probably wouldn't torture him as much as his younger brother, and that could only be an improvement.

The only problem was he had to escape under the noses the god of evil and his closest lieutenant, who could sense all magic in the End and teleport anywhere. Seto knew that if he was caught he wouldn't get a second chance to escape. But honestly, there was no way he wouldn't be caught.

Not without help.

He needed help.

But who would help him? Not Wispice. She wouldn't believe him, and if she did she'd tell everyone else about his plans. Not Aradyn. Not Rosewing. Ember? Never. She was completely under the thrall of Herobrine, and would kill him sooner than help him. Seto almost pitied her. She was in a prison, and there were no chains because she didn't know how to look.

That left Sky, Ty, and Jason as the only other beings even in the End, since Mitch was dead. And even if Mitch was alive, Seto would never turn to him with a plea. Sky? Sky was next to useless for Seto's purposes, and he probably wouldn't get a chance to speak to him anyway. Ty might be on Herobrine's side now; Seto wasn't sure. Jason was his only option.

Great. That conversation would go well. _"Hi Jason, I know I've tortured you multiple times, and I almost killed your friend Mitch, too, but would you mind helping me save my ass right about now?"_

Did Seto really have a choice, though?

* * *

><p><em><strong>Meanwhile...<strong>_

* * *

><p>Jason was about to become a monster. A monster serving Herobrine. He was a stinking coward, and in the end, what difference had he made with his surrender? Now Mitch was dead, and it was all his fault.<p>

Usually, Jason wasn't the type to wallow in self-pity. But right now, it felt like the easiest thing to do, and like the shallow, yellow-bellied, pigeon-livered traitorous rat he was, he wallowed, crying himself dry. He was hardly conscious of Aradyn's soft, cold hands massaging his neck, or of her kind, gentle voice whispering to him, telling him that it was going to be okay.

Hardly.

Jason raised his head, and she smoothed his hair. "Jase, it wasn't your fault."

"It w-was," he sniffled, feeling like the pathetic onion-eyed codpiece he knew himself to be. "Ara, it w-was! And n-now I'm going t-to be a monster!"

"We're not monsters, Jason."

"N-not you!" he said hurriedly, tears falling into his mouth as he spoke. He was a useless pumpion and a waste of life.

"The others aren't either. You just don't understand. Give them half a chance."

"D-does it hurt?" Jason whimpered. "B-becoming like you?" Like the worthless traitor he was, he had to ask.

Aradyn hesitated. "Yeah. But then it's over, and all you'll have left is a small scar."

"Are all d-dragons like Z-Zariah?" _Coward! Wretch! Maggoty toadstool!_ he inwardly screamed at himself.

"Aradyn isn't," she said. It was extremely weird to hear her refer to herself in the third person. He knew that this must be Rogue that he was speaking to, but it was easiest to just call her Aradyn. "At first, she and I didn't get along, but we worked it out eventually."

Her hands had stopped moving and now rested on his shoulders. Jason met her diamond-pure blue gaze hesitantly. Not for the first time, he felt his brain start to melt out his ears just from looking at her. "I…" He couldn't think of what to say, so he buried his nose into her neck and cried a little more.

"Shh, Jase. I'll take care of you. I'll teach you whatever you need to learn. And if you ever need anything, I'm here. I promise." Her tail wrapped around his leg, stroking over the burns on his calf muscle with her soothingly cold scales. "Whenever you want to talk to someone, I'll be here for you."

Jason would later determine that he had handled with the situation with aplomb. Right now, though, the only thing he could think to do was keep right on sobbing all over her. Aradyn slid her hands over his back, petting him, stroking him, making him cry harder, because even though she was a dragon hybrid, she cared about him, and that was more than he deserved, after what had happened to Mitch.

"Jase," she murmured softly into his ear. "Jason, it's okay. Is there anything I can do to help you right now?"

There was someone he needed to talk to, actually, if they'd talk to him. They probably wouldn't, because Jason had the distinct impression he'd hurt their feelings quite a lot during their last encounter. "T-Ty," he choked out. "I n-need to t-talk to T-Ty."

There was a moment's pause, and then Aradyn nodded. "Alright, if he'll come. I don't know if he will. But I'll try, Jase, I swear I will."

Jason nodded and fell back against the couch, locking himself into as small a ball as possible to try to prevent any more tears from running down his face.

He failed miserably.

* * *

><p><strong>Ya get bonus points if ya can follow Ian-Logic. I laughed really, really hard when I was writing about 'ship names.' No SOTC since this is technically Shtuff, not a chapter.<strong>


	21. Boxes & Coconuts (Ty)

Ty fell back against the pillows of his bed, picking up the lavender-bound book from where he'd hidden it. Maybe now he'd have a chance to read it, while Ember was gone to talk to Herobrine. He opened it to the beginning, determined to decipher as much of the cramped handwriting as he could.

* * *

><p><strong>REGERE SECULORUM<strong>

_Y. 7513  
>It has been nearly five millennia since my brother ousted me from the Overworld. Since then, I have languished in the Nether, lord of the lowly pigmen when I should be worshipped by the humans. My infernal brother has only grown in strength. I, on the other hand, have been greatly weakened. There must be an explanation!<em>

_Y. 8297  
>Finally, after centuries of searching, I have found the Book of Prophecy, written by the All-Seeing Camarila. It tells of how my brother's powers and mine are directly tied to the worlds we control. It appears that my brother is the god of <em>two_ planes, while I only rule one. It is unacceptable!  
>Camarila's book tells of a mythical fourth plane that exists only as a gigantic island in the Void. She refers to it only as the End, and describes it as a lawless land where strange creatures resembling the dragons of legend dwell. With only three planes in existence, I will never be able to equal my brother in power. I must find the End. I must discover the fourth plane. It is my only chance to ever reclaim the Overworld.<em>

_Y. 8786  
>I have done it. I have finally discovered the portal, and as I write this I am in transit to the End.<br>Continued:  
>I have been exploring the End for several days now. There are many dragons that abound this place, but they have soon learned to fear me. All except for one, that is. She is a particularly pugnacious beast known as Zariah, and her title in the dragon's language roughly translates to 'Queen.' I have tried to punish her into obeisance with no success, and she scorns my attempts to explain that I am a god and she is my subject. I am loathe to kill such a potentially powerful weapon, though.<em>

_Y. 8901  
>It has been over a century, and still Zariah remains obstinate that she alone is the ruler of this place. Her powers are greater than I ever anticipated. Perhaps she is what passes as this land's god, for I have felt no significant change in my strength since claiming my new dominion. There must be a way to break her thrall. I cannot accept that nearly a millennia of my time has gone to waste.<em>

_Y. 9236  
>I have, in the course of my studies, discovered that there is a method of forcing two souls into the same body. Perhaps I could force Zariah into a less powerful vesicle. The only problem would be finding someone weak yet with a strong enough will and spirit to restrain a dragoness. An ideal candidate would be a human child. I must begin to research this spell further, and investigate options for the host body.<em>

_Y. 9999  
>This spell will be effective, though certain modifications must be added to force Zariah's unwilling mind into the body of a human. Now I must find a candidate.<em>

_Y. 10067  
>I have found him. The boy's name is Alexander Marquee, and he is fifteen years old. He is known as a bully for his habits of inflicting pain on younger children. He is stubborn and strong-willed, but a coward around authority. I believe him to be an excellent candidate.<br>Continued:  
>Alexander's mind snapped after he successfully held in Zariah for three months. She managed to unravel the spell and escape, killing the boy in the process. Though I punished her, she injured me severely. I am at a lose as to why the damages caused by her claws and teeth only heal at the rate of normal humans if I do not use a potion.<br>The boy's soul must have been either too old or too weak to handle and adapt to Zariah's. I shall have to find someone younger with more courage._

_Y. 10113  
>There is a girl, named Emma Adena Grey. She is only six, but will be an effective host, and hopefully restrain Zariah. I will at last be the god of the End, as I should be.<em>

* * *

><p>Ty didn't have to read more. He knew the rest of the story. But it made him sick.<p>

Ember was wrong. Herobrine wasn't helping her get revenge, or even wanting her help. She was only a tool, a vesicle to hold an enemy that the god couldn't quite overpower. She was a box, a fragile box that he treated delicately, but really, nothing more than a box. However, she was also a box that held a weapon—_she_ was also a weapon, and Herobrine would use her to destroy everything.

"Not good," he muttered. Not good at all.

There was a knock on his door, and Ty quickly shoved the book under his pillow and laid back like he was resting. "Come in."

Aradyn entered, bouncing up and down on her heels. "Jason wants to talk to you."

**"Tell Jason that Ty is simply too nice to tell Jason that he is an inconsiderate jerk who deserves to be broiled alive with barbeque sauce, stewed with tomatoes, and served with mustard onto a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich,"** Ty snapped. **"With salt in his eyes and pepper up his nose."**

_What the Nether, Eg?_

**_I simply speak the truth._**

Aradyn blinked. "Umm… what?"

**"Jason hurt Ty's feelings, and he's been crying his eyes out all day. In addition to my previous suggestion, Jason also deserves to be trampled by a rhinoceros, made into jelly, and spread on toast with butter, to be eaten by Sky, who is also a jerk,"** Ty explained. **"Alternatively, Jason could be carried over the ocean by a swallow, and dropped onto a desert island so hot that he boils to death in coconut milk."**

_Eguire…_

**_He deserves it_****,** the dragon thought angrily. **_He hurt your feelings._**

_But he's still my friend!_ Ty thought back.

**_No, you're still his friend._**

_He wants to talk to me._

**_He can talk to you while he boils in coconut milk._**

_You were serious? Eg, you've never even seen a coconut! And there aren't desert islands in the End! Or swallows! And a swallow could never carry a person!_

**_Maybe if he gripped it by the husks…_**

_People don't have husks! And it's a simple matter of size-weight ratios! A five-ounce bird cannot carry a—_

**_Not Jason, the coconuts. The swallow could bring them here._**

"Eguire, let Ty talk," Aradyn sighed.

**"Fine."** Ty gasped as the green haze lifted from his eyes.

"So will you talk to Jason? He asked for you."

"I…"

"Ty, please do it. He is literally bawling. I'm trying to calm him down, but…" She spread her hands.

He might regret it. Jason might just make Ty feel worse. But Ty had to say yes. "I'll come."

* * *

><p><strong>Did anyone get the Monty Python reference?<strong>

**Also, I started a new side story, as some people already know (Yay!). Check it out if you want to! It's a present tense, first person deep POV, so... pretty much the polar opposite of this past tense, limited omniscient POV, but personally I think my writing's a bit sloppier in this story (I like how my new story is turning out :D). Please tell me if you notice any tense slips in either of them!**

**Also, in my long tradition of saying also too much, I need to remind you that there is also another awesome story that needs to be updated by the wonderful KKKstories! (No, her name is not what you just thought. It is, as she explains in her profile, a joke between her friends. I have no room to judge, since my nickname is, well, weird. And a long story.) It's called Seto's Rise, and is an awesome oneshot that MUST BE SEQUELLED. IF YOU READ THIS, FRIEND, SEQUEL THAT STORY FOR HAPPINESS! K, KK? (I stink at puns. Don't judge me.)**

**Read that, check out my other story if you want, and peace out!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Brave Sir Robin" from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. <strong>


	22. Payback (Ember)

"You are asking me to restore the human's life?" Herobrine asked, gaping at Ember.

"Yes," she said quietly.

"Why?"

"Because…" Ember steeled herself, and then plunged on. "Because I don't like seeing people die. Herobrine, you told me that we wouldn't kill more people than we had to. Well, Mitch didn't have to die. You could have healed him."

"Was he the human you had feelings for?" the god asked. "Their insignificant lives run together in my mind."

"What? No, I never cared about any of them." _Except Sky. Maybe._

**_You liked him. You loved him._**

_Shut up._

**_You were a lovesick puppy. You still are. You like him. Admit it._**

_I do not like Sky._

**_But you did. _**

Ember shook her head, trying to get Zariah out. "Go away."

"Excuse me?" Herobrine asked archly.

"Not you. Her." She jerked her thumb at her skull.

"Ah." He was silent for a moment. "I cannot help you. The human will stay dead."

"Can't or won't?" Herobrine _could_. He _could_ bring Mitch back. So why wasn't he?

"I will not. You shouldn't trouble yourself with the lives of mortals; it will only make your own life harder. Stay focused, Ember, for we will soon achieve our goal. We are closer than we have ever been to taking control of the Overworld."

"Why won't you bring Mitch back? It would be easy for you! He died only a little while ago!" she shouted, her voice rising.

"Ember!" the god snarled. "Enough! You cannot understand the entirety of my plan, but suffice it to say that bringing back the petty life of an ignorant, irreverent human does not figure into it! It would take too much of my energy!"

"But—"

"No. This conversation is over." Herobrine teleported away before Ember could say anything else.

**_You shouldn't have bothered._**

She crouched down beside Mitch's stone-cold corpse. He was deathly white, the spots of blood that had been flung from his throat dried to a rusty chestnut color, and the burns from Seto's magic inscribing red and black raised marks on his skin. His eyes were still open, though now they were glassy and blank. It didn't make sense. Why had Herobrine needed to kill Mitch?

It wasn't right. There was a fundamental un-rightness to the taking of a life, even if Mitch was a pain in the neck. Why had Herobrine not been willing to bring Mitch back?

Ember rocked back onto her heels. This… this wasn't right. Ty had come around to their side without torture, hadn't he? Well, Herobrine had had to punish him, but that made sense—he hadn't been obeying. He might have been fused because his life was in danger, but Ty seemed to be fine with it now, even though he hadn't exactly agreed.

Herobrine had killed someone.

He'd lied to someone.

But he must have had a reason. He must have needed it for his plan. It had to have been necessary—Herobrine didn't hurt people unless they were in his way, he said. He didn't lie unless it had to be done. There must be an explanation—after all, hadn't he said it would take too much energy? That must be it.

Yet somehow, she couldn't reconcile that with the fact that someone was lying dead on the floor, and that another person was crying their eyes out because they blamed themselves for the murder of the dead someone.

Murder. It was murder, wasn't it? But there was a reason. There had to be a reason.

Oh, yeah. Herobrine had hurt Seto, too. And tried to kill him. Seto… Seto didn't deserve that, even if he'd been stupid enough to fight Herobrine.

Who was she to judge, though? Herobrine knew what he was doing. He had a plan. He would do what was necessary to take over the Overworld. There was definitely a reason, just like there always was. Seto had needed to be punished, if Herobrine had punished him. And what authority did she have to interfere with a god?

_"If you can do it, Emma, if you can get Mitch back… That would mean a lot. You could never know how much it would mean. Please, Em. If you can… If you could do it… Just try." Ty sighed, and turned to go to his room. The girl next to him grabbed the hem of his shirt, spinning him back around._

_"Ty, I don't know if Herobrine will listen."_

_"Then make him. Please. For Mitch's sake. For Jason's sake. For _my_ sake. Em, if you can do it, if you can get Mitch to be not dead, then I swear, I'll find a way to pay you back."_

_"There might have been a reason Herobrine needed to kill Mitch."_

_Ty looked at the purple-haired girl tiredly. "There's no reason to kill an innocent person. Emma, just try." He wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed his nose into the top of her head as he hugged her._

Maybe Ty was right. Maybe it was wrong for Herobrine to have killed Mitch. But what was she going to do about it? Herobrine had refused to bring Mitch back. And she couldn't do anything about it. Mitch was just the first of many to die, Ember realized. He was the first of the humans to die for the greater good.

The greater good. It was so easy to decide to give up someone's life, when they were a calculation, when they were a quantity. But a life didn't feel like just a quantity. Mitch was a person, and it wasn't just him that his death had hurt. Jason was a miserable wreck. Ty was quiet about it, but she could tell that he was still a bit in shock. She didn't know how Sky was feeling, but it probably wasn't good.

It was wrong that that much pain had been inflicted. It was wrong, and there was only one way to fix it.

Bring Mitch back to life.

**_Good luck with that, idiot._**

* * *

><p><strong>Well... that was interesting. Updates are going to be slower, because I am making a documentary.<strong>

**SOTC: "22" by Taylor Swift. Because this is chapter 22 and I am too tired to come up with a different song.**


	23. Safe (Ty)

"Hey," Ty said stiffly, looking at the unmoving shape on the couch.

It raised its head, revealing itself to be Jason. "H-hey." His eyes were swollen and bloodshot, and his brown hair was thoroughly mussed.

Ty didn't know where the conversation would go from there. 'Hi Jason, I hear Mitch is dead, and I sent the girl who captured us in the first place to go convince the god of evil to restore him to life before a dragon is stuffed into your brain.' 'Hello Jason, do you still hate me? Because it sounded like it when you were telling me how I'm a monster and not your friend anymore.' 'So, Jason, do you want me to freaking comfort you after you told me that you hate me because the girl who you hate saved my life and happened to dragonify me in the process? Please note that I didn't agree to the whole damn thing.'

"Y-you c-came," Jason whispered slowly.

"Yeah." After a moment's thought, Ty added, "Why the Nether wouldn't I?"

He wasn't sure if he was being sarcastic or not. Jason was still Ty's best friend, even if he didn't feel the same way. But some of the things he'd said were… were mean.

"T-Ty," Jason pleaded, his voice trembling. "I'm—"

"You're what? Sorry? Sorry that you made me feel like dirt and want to be dead?" Ty spoke with as much dispassion as he could muster. He didn't want to say those things, but it was like his mouth was moving on its own. Because it needed to be said.

"Yes!" he sobbed.

That brought Ty up a bit short, but it didn't stop the venom from creeping into his voice as he spat back, "Yeah, well, good for you. Sorry makes everything better, doesn't it? They taught us that crap back in kindergarten. When we were _friends_, remember? Back before I was a _monster_."

Jason flinched. "T-Ty…," he repeated, almost desperately.

"What?" Ty snarled. His tail slapped against the floor and his wings flared, but he felt horribly hollow inside.

"P-please don't act l-like this."

"Huh? How am I acting? Defensive? Like maybe my feelings are hurt? What would give you that impression?"

"What am I supposed to do?" Jason finally shouted. "I need to talk to you and you won't let me!"

"Well, maybe you should have thought of that before you told me"—his voice broke—"told me—t-told me that I w-wasn't y-your friend," Ty said, what started as a scream dying away weakly.

Jason made a small choking noise and then slid over on the couch. Ty slunk over to sit beside him, wincing at the sight of the small cuts and bruises on his neck. Leaning back, Jason rested his head on Ty's leg, curling himself up tightly. "I'm an awful p-person. And soon I'm n-not even going to be a person."

"So you're my friend again?" Ty asked. He had to make sure. It seemed pretty obvious, given that Jason had snuggled up to him as though he were some sort of gigantic teddy bear, but…

"If y-you'll let me be. Ty, I was j-just scared, and startled, and… N-now I'm going to start c-crying again!" He promptly burst into tears.

"Dude, let go of my leg. I'm not a tissue."

"S-sorry," Jason sniffled, sitting up again. "I'm s-so stupid."

"Stop. Jason, just stop. You said some really mean shit and made me feel like crap, but it's okay."

**_That was probably not comforting. Good job_****,** Eguire said, satisfaction evident in his tone.

_It was _meant_ to be comforting._

**_Well, it wasn't._**

Eguire appeared to be right as Jason hiccupped and looked away. "I said mean shit and made you feel like crap. Great."

"Well, you kind of did…"

"Yeah. I know. T-Ty, I'm a-a… a…" Whatever he was got drowned out as he burst into a fresh wave of tears.

This new, sobbing, weak Jason was impossible to reconcile with the real Jason, the sassy, smartass Jason. Ty knew that he was being completely useless, but he didn't exactly know what would be use_ful_. What was he supposed to do?

A convenient distraction appeared with a soft pop. Ember swayed on her feet, and Ty was only barely able to catch her as she fell over. "Emma? What's going on?"

She didn't answer, only took a deep, ragged breath and pointed at the spot where she'd appeared. There was a bundle lying there, a bundle in a red-checked jacket.

"Em? Can you talk?"

Ember shook her head and pressed against his chest. Ty steered them towards a chair and sat down, holding her. She was shivering, he realized, and touching her was like putting his hand on an ice cube. Her eyes were tightly shut, and her lips were pale, almost blue. Every time she breathed, she sounded like she were choking.

"Shh, it's alright," he promised.

"What are you doing with _her_?" Jason said sharply, sounding somewhat scandalized.

Ember rested her head on Ty's shoulder, and he put his arms around her waist, shivering from the chill she radiated. "Taking care of her."

He was taking care of Herobrine's dangerous gamble. Taking care of the god's weapon. He was holding the being that Herobrine had kept alive, believing that she would be key in helping him take over the Overworld. But he didn't care, because right now she was only Ember, and she was scared and alone.

"She's the one who caught you and brought you here in the first place!" Jason hissed.

"We have a complicated relationship," Ty muttered. "Emma, it's okay. Whatever's wrong, it isn't here. You're okay now. I've got you."

"You're bananas," Jason said. Disbelief was carved plainly into every feature of his face.

At least he wasn't crying anymore. That was a plus.

"Em, I need you to tell me what happened." Had Herobrine not agreed? Was Mitch still dead?

She clung to him tightly. "T-Ty, s-something… I j-just… I…"

"What?"

"Herobrine w-wouldn't bring Mitch b-back." Ember gulped. "So I did."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys... So, sorry it took a while to update. I have been working on Left Behind a lot, plus another new story that I haven't started publishing yet. Chapters are going to come a bit slower from now on, because I am working on two additional things.<strong>

**1. An original story to take to a writing workshop.**

**2. Two shorts that may end up published. Like, in a book. Like, for real being an actual author. Squee!**

**So life is a lot of writing. Plus making an indie animal rights documentary (the script is written, but now I need to edit together my footage). And practicing for the biggest chess tournament I have ever played (potentially six hours a game). This means that updates are going to be a bit slow, but please bear with me!**

**Also, whoa. Ty was pretty nasty to Jason. But then... can you blame him? **

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Smile" by Lily Allen. Her music is cool. <strong>**_At first, when I see you cry/It makes me smile/Just go ahead and smile..._**** Also, does anyone actually read the SOTC? Because otherwise I think I'll stop doing it, since I am lazy and every song I pick goes on replay in my brain for about an hour. Oh, the sacrifices I make!**


	24. True (Ember)

Ty instantly went completely still. "You… what?"

She'd assumed it would go like this. "I b-brought Mitch back to life. He has a p-pulse."

Ember buried her face farther into Ty's shoulder. She shouldn't have that power. The only time she'd ever done anything close to that was when she'd captured them, with the ropes of End energy. That had only happened because Herobrine had channeled some of his power through her, he said. So how had she saved Mitch? It was impossible to believe that she'd done it, but she had. Ember had felt his pulse.

"How?"

She didn't know, and that was terrifying. All she knew was that she'd wanted Mitch to be alive, and suddenly, he had started breathing.

"Ty… Mitch is alive?" Jason asked.

"I… I think so." He paused, and she could hear his heart racing. "Emma… you…"

"Let's go check," Jason decided.

"Em, can you walk?"

"Y-yeah." Ty set her on her feet, wrapping his arm around her to keep her upright. "He's alive, T-Ty."

Jason crouched beside Mitch, who she'd teleported with her. As Ember and Ty approached, she could see that the mess of his throat had webbed over, new almost translucent skin over the once-gaping slash. "He is. He's breathing," Jason said, staring at Ember. "You… you…" And then he hugged her. "For you being an evil traitor that I hate, I think we're going to get along pretty well."

Ty coughed. "Jason, you're getting Emm—Ember wet. You're still soaked with tears. Now let go of her."

"Fine. Oh, holy crap though. I still can't believe that…" Jason turned back to Mitch. "When will he wake up?"

"Soon, probably," Ty said. His eyes were no longer so tired and sad; he looked happy now. "Em, have I ever mentioned that I love you? You are freakin' amazing."

"How did you do it?"

How indeed. Ember didn't understand it herself. "I'm n-not sure."

Ty looked like he was going to say something, but just then there was a faint pop.

Herobrine smiled. "Jason, I believe that we…" His voice trailed off. "Why did you bring the human carcass here, Ember?"

This was bad. This was very bad.

"Ember, you will tell me now."

As she started to open her mouth, Ty stepped in front of her. "Mitch is alive now, no thanks to you. Emma brought him back to life after you lied to Jason. She knows right from wrong." He glanced at Ember, eyes soft. "Even if it takes her a little while to realize it."

"Then she would know I had a reason for leaving the human dead," Herobrine spat. "She disobeyed me."

"Y-you never said not to do it myself," Ember said, her voice coming out as a squeak.

"Because you do not have the power. Or did not. What have you been hiding?"

"N-nothing!"

Herobrine advanced a step, but Ty blocked his path. "If you hurt her, you'll deal with me. And I think if I explain what's going on, the others won't hesitate to join me. She's their friend."

"Nonsense. You are no match for a god, boy! Do not think to defy me!" He slapped Ty, who growled low in his throat. "After I finish with her, you and Seto will both suffer for your impudence today."

"Really? Do you want to bet that I can't make you hurt? Maybe I couldn't hurt a full god on his home plane, but you…" Ty spread his hands and smiled. What the Nether was going on?

"You know…?" Herobrine sputtered.

"I know what?" he asked innocently.

The god glared at Ty, his fists clenched. Finally, he spoke. "I wasn't going to hurt Ember."

"I really hope not." Ty stretched his wings out to their full span of probably about five meters, knocking over a lamp but appearing not to notice.

"You'll pay."

"You really need to use a less clichéd threat."

Herobrine's face twisted with rage as he bared his teeth at Ty, who simply yawned back, showing his slightly more impressive set of fangs. They were getting nowhere fast, and Ember sensed that very soon this would end extremely badly. But there didn't seem to be a strategic way to interrupt.

"Jason," she hissed as Herobrine growled.

"Hi. I do still kind of hate you, you know. You're just less evil," Jason whispered back. She crouched down to sit beside him.

"Okay. That's fine. But they're going to start fighting soon."

"Yeah," he agreed. "It's not going to be pretty."

"My thoughts exactly."

"Then why don't you go stop them, idiot?"

"How would I stop them?"

"They're fighting over you. Are you blind? Are. You. Blind? Just side with one of them."

"They aren't fighting over me!" Ember whisper-shouted.

"Ty definitely is. And Herobrine's fighting back because Ty is in his way."

"You're not a psychologist."

"Oh, and you are? Don't try to understand guys. We are enigmatic and mysterious beings. Who happen to be highly motivated by food, power, and hot girls." Jason glanced at her. "You fall into the category of hot girl, as loathe as I am to admit it. Ty wants to impress you, first of all, and protect you too. Herobrine wants to control Ty, and part of that is not letting him control this situation. And thus male posturing is born. All of this is brought on by the presence of an exemplary female specimen. So I'm going to blame you when the building explodes."

"Ty doesn't even like me! We're just friends!" But…

_"Beautiful like you."_

Did he actually… like her? Like, like _like_ her? Nope, he didn't.

"He's totally, totally crushing on you. Trust me. And he'll murder me when he finds out I told you. And the most awesome part is, he probably doesn't even know that he likes you."

"How would he like me and not know it?"

"He thinks that he's fine just being friends. He thinks that he just likes your company, and maybe that you're kind of cute. But he'll tell himself that he just wants to stay friends, that there's no reason he should like you, that you're an evil bitch who betrayed us all, that you're too good for him, etcetera, etcetera." Jason smirked. "All lies. He'll eventually realize that he is completely smitten."

What? No. Ty didn't like her.

"But that's not important. The question is," he continued, "do you side with him or Herobrine? And you have to decide fast, because otherwise this is going to escalating from really weird and bad to worse." He indicated Ty and Herobrine with his chin.

"You impudent little whelp!"

"At least my insults are creative, you microscopic cockroach."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Like I said. Now go fix this. It's your fault for being hot."

"Don't you have a crush on Aradyn?" Ember said before she could think.

"Damn. Is it obvious that I think she's the most amazing person in the world? Yeah, I kind of do have a crush. And don't worry, you aren't nearly as pretty as her."

"Good to know," Ember muttered.

"Yeah. I like blondes. And—"

"There is such a thing as too much information. Please stop right there."

He laughed. "Fine. So, basically, go tell whoever you'd rather not be pissed at you that they're right. I'll watch and enjoy this. And probably laugh."

"You're in a good mood."

Jason's face fell. "Nah," he finally muttered. "I'm just trying to enjoy my last moments as a human being." And for a few seconds, Ember could see the terror that he had been skillfully hiding.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry if I offend any guys, but I think Jason got the psychology pretty right :D AND I'M GOING TO DO NANOWRIMO! I WILL BE WRITING A NOVEL! YAY! <strong>

**And also, I feel pretty bad, because I know what's going to happen to Jason. Ha! Ha! HA! (JK, I don't feel bad. #NoRegrets)**

**Also, remember to send in questions for the Q&A at the end of the story!**

**Also, I will have finished my first indie film ever by Wednesday! (If a documentary is indie film.)**

**Also, I need prompts for oneshots! I have a Minecraft oneshot collection, so send me prompts and I can write!**

* * *

><p><strong>SOTC: "Zombie" by Natalia Kills.<strong>


	25. Watch and Learn (Ember)

Ember did all she could to avoid Ty's gaze as Herobrine led the way out of the building. She'd gotten the two of them to calm down by telling Ty to knock it off and that Herobrine wouldn't ever hurt her. Well, Herobrine had calmed down, but Ty was sulking.

They, Aradyn, and Rosewing were all coming out to watch Jason's transformation. Wispice had gone to fetch Sky, who Herobrine insisted had to watch. Jason had slunk back to stand beside Aradyn and Ty, who were murmuring encouragement to him and caressing his hair, though each was not necessarily doing both. Rose had also joined the trio, though not to encourage Jason.

More to flirt with Ty.

"Ty, I like your shirt."

"Oh, um, that's great," Ember heard Ty mutter.

"Can I hold it?"

"What?"

"Take off your shirt," Rose explained.

"Umm…"

That was about as much as Ember could stomach, so she sped up to be level with Herobrine. The god glanced at her dispassionately. "Hello."

"Hey."

"I am still displeased about your decision to bring Mitch back to life."

"It wasn't a decision. It happened."

"But you decided to _care_," Herobrine pointed out. "I have noticed that your poor decisions seem to be correlated with the amount of time you spend around Tyler. Would you like to elaborate?"

"You can't blame him for my decisions. And his name is Ty."

"I see." He paused. "I noticed that you and Tyler ate together. In human society, that would typically be considered a dinner date. Which would imply a romantic relationship. Is there anything of that nature between you two?"

"What? No." _I think._

"Good. I find him dreadful. I'm glad that you concur."

"No, I do like him!" She realized how that sounded only after the words had left her lips. "I mean, as a friend. He's a good friend."

"Hmm. I think it's more than that, Ember. You spend more time around him than you should. He is impertinent and headstrong and independent and has too much influence over you. I would advise you to stop talking with him. And if you will not listen to my advice, it will be an order."

What? No way. "I—"

"You feel something for him?"

"No, I—"

"Then this should be easy. He is dangerous to our plans, but without him the others will never join. Then, once they are sworn to our side, he might have an unfortunate accident that would be entirely not my fault."

"What are sayi—"

"Tyler will most likely be terminated at the end of his usefulness. He could make this fail, Ember. Think of your brother. You need to get revenge. You can't get revenge if Tyler spoils our plans. It's the only way. He was once a human too. He was scared of you. Hasn't he called you a monster? He thinks it all the time, Ember. He's wrong. He'll never embrace his nature and would side with the humans. The humans who killed your father. Your mother. Your brother, Ember. In a way, he's just like them."

Yes… he was… he was like _them_. Like a human… he needed to pay too…

Ember shook her head, clearing the fog. It wasn't the familiar purple haze of Zariah's influence, more… "What did you do to me?"

Herobrine stared at her. "I… I did nothing!"

"You were messing with my head."

"Of course not, Ember," he scoffed.

She looked away. He probably hadn't. Right? But… he was going to kill Ty. "You can't kill him."

"On the contrary, I can and will. It only makes sense."

"I'll turn him to our side. He'll obey you. He'll behave. But don't kill him."

The god regarded her for a moment. "You may attempt, but you will fail. And he will die."

Ember turned away and slowed her pace enough to merge with Ty's group. His green eyes flicked briefly in her direction, and then he glanced at a small rock formation.

"You know, I think I'd like to take a look at those rocks," he announced, gazing at Ember.

His meaning could not have been much clearer. "I'll go with you."

Together they moved away from the group, neither of them saying a word. Ty leapt onto a boulder and glared at Ember until she climbed up beside him. His expression was unreadable, and she found herself staring into his green eyes, trying to crack their code.

"So… Herobrine wants to turn me to your side, huh?"

Oh no. "Y-you heard?"

"I heard that I'm impertinent and headstrong, but that's about it. Thanks for the compliments, and I'm not even being sarcastic."

"Just that?" She had to be sure. "That was all?"

"Yes, Emma, that was all." His eyes narrowed. "Was there something I wasn't supposed to hear?"

"No." Ember forced all expression from her eyes. "I was only checking."

"Mmm." Ty didn't sound like he believed her. "You know I don't think that Herobrine is really doing this for the greater good. He's evil, and you should face the facts." He seemed extremely confident about this.

"He is not evil!"

"Emma, you don't know what I… look, Em, the point is, I found out something today, and it's important. Really, really important. Really, really, really important."

"Great. Are you going to tell me?"

"Yeah." He leaned towards her, and suddenly Ember's heart dropped into her stomach. He… liked her, didn't he? So…

So what? She didn't like him back. Not one bit.

**_You liar._**

"I was reading something today, and, well…" Ty paused. His breath was warm against her ear, and his lips stirred her hair. _He was so close_. No, she wasn't going to start thinking about how nice he smelled, and how extraordinarily strong his hands felt and… Why was she holding his hands?

She let go quickly. No. This didn't make any sense. Ember didn't like Ty. Totally not. She hated how sweet he was, how obnoxiously yet endearingly sarcastic he was; she hated his cute hair, his green eyes, his soft, adorable smirk… Hated him, in fact. Or something like that.

"Em, what's wrong?"

"Everything."

"Well…" Ty pulled back and smirked, _that_ smirk, the one she hated so much. Well, maybe hated wasn't it. She loathed that smirk, because it gave him dimples, and she was useless as soon as he got dimples. It was his secret weapon. And she hated him for it. "That's kind of how I feel. All this stuff with Jason… Mitch dying and being _brought back to life_… Sky still in prison… Seto being a beat up train wreck… and what I read. You need to hea—but no." He sighed. "You'll never believe it."

"T-Ty…" The words caught in her throat. "I n-need to t-tell you s-something…" She needed to tell him what Herobrine had said. About… killing him.

"Yeah?"

But she couldn't do it. Ember was too scared, and she hated herself for it as she met his gorgeous green eyes. "Never mind." Ty looked at her, his eyebrows knitting together. At that moment, a loud roar came from somewhere on the ground, about where Herobrine and the others were. "The dragon is here."

"Dragon?"

And then, another roar answered it. "Dragon_s_."

Why two dragons? Herobrine only needed one to use on Jason.

But then another thought occurred to her.

"Em…? What's going on?" Ty asked hestitantly.

"We need to get over there. Now."

* * *

><p><strong>Wow... HOW DOES EMBER STILL TRUST HEROBRINE? There was drama. It was beautiful. And I'm sure you all just love me for my cliffhangers.<strong>

**SOTC: "Dragon" by Alyson Stoner (I think I got her name right...)**


	26. Kiss For Real (Ty)

Ty yelped as Ember grabbed his arm and slid off the boulder, pulling him along. "What are you— Oh."

They appeared right next to Wispice, Sky, and Rose. "Portal physics, babe. Get with the program," Rose said, popping her gum. "We heard you squeal from all the way over here."

"I am not your 'babe!'" he protested, heat rushing into his face. Rosewing rolled her eyes.

"Whatever, bitsy pookums. I wub you too." Wispice giggled, and seemingly encouraged, Rose wrapped her arm around Ty's shoulders, and looked towards her friends. What was going on? "What do you think, guys? D'you dare me?"

"Yes!" Wisp squeaked.

In an instant, Rose mashed her face against Ty's.

It was his first kiss, and it was not in any way pleasant as Rose grabbed his hair and held him close. _Oh Notch oh Notch oh Notch someone save me please oh Notch get her off of me ah not good save me HELP!_

Eventually, he managed to get his wits together enough to tear himself away from her. That was awful. That was beyond awful. It made the time that Mitch had—actually, no, it wasn't worse than that. But it was still on the list of the top ten most disgusting experiences of his life. "Stay away from me!" he warned Rosewing.

It didn't have much effect, as she had fallen to the ground and was laughing so hard that it sounded almost as though she were choking. "Y-your face," she sobbed, tears streaming down her face as she snorted with laughter.

Ember glared at her. "Rose. Stop messing with him."

"What? I was just—"

"You kissed him."

"So?"

"So…" Ember sighed. "So that wasn't cool. Guys, do you know why Herobrine has two dragons?"

"I think he might fuse Sky," Wispice offered.

Ty glanced at his pale friend and bit his lip. Sky had blood all over his face, and a closer inspection revealed piercings around his mouth. He raised his eyes—hazel, now that he didn't have sunglasses.

"What?" Ember asked.

"Yeah, probably so," Rose said. "He's almost as cute as Ty. Pity you have dibs on him, Em."

"I do _not_ have dibs on Sky!"

"Oh, yeah, you like Seto, right?"

"I don't like Seto!" she said, voice shooting up an octave. "I like—" Ember gulped. "No. I don't like anyone. Rose, shut up."

Rose did not shut up. "Give me three guesses, okay? Okay. So… first of all… Jason?"

"I do not like Jason! Plus Aradyn would kill me if I did! Now be quiet!"

"Then, how about Mitch?"

While they squabbled, Ty moved closer to Sky, who flinched slightly, his bottom lip trembling. "Are y-you just like the rest now? Do y-you want to hurt me too?" His voice cracked as he slowly sank to the ground, pulling his knees into his chest and wrapping his arms around himself.

Ty knelt beside him. "Sky, no. I won't hurt you. It's still _me_. I'm still Ty." He blinked away the tears that had come suddenly to his eyes.

Sky trembled as Ty placed a hand on his shoulder. "Y-you hurt Jason."

That struck home, but managed to keep his voice level as he replied, "It was an accident. It won't ever happen again." Ty swallowed.

"Mitch is d-dead," Sky stuttered.

"No. Emma… brought him back."

"W-who's Emma?"

Inwardly he cursed himself. Why did he have to bring up Ember? Sky's sort-of girlfriend who had betrayed him and handed him to Herobrine and had a psycho dragon in her head… probably a fairly awkward subject. "Never mind. Sky, it's okay. Mitch is alive. Everything… everything is going to be okay."

"Y-you don't believe th-that."

"I do," Ty said, as earnestly as he could get the lie off his tongue. No, he didn't believe that. How could things ever be okay?

Sky looked up, revealing the tears on his face. "I want to go home," he whispered. "I want to go home and forget about all of this. D-don't think I'm… weak, but Ty, I can't handle it. I want to wake up and tell you all about my crazy dream, but it isn't a dream. I'm really in the End, and I really was tortured, and I'm really about to have a dragon in my head. I just want to go _home_." He sniffled slightly. "Is that t-too much to ask?"

Ty couldn't think of anything to say to that. Here, it _was_ too much.

But they would be going home, wouldn't they, when Herobrine used them to invade the Overworld? They would be going home, but Rose and Wispice and Aradyn and Ember and Seto would all be… killing people. Yes, they would go to kill people. They'd want him to join in, too.

Of course, he never would. He would rather die than join Herobrine.

"T-Ty?" Sky said timidly. "Are y-you alright?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"I do not like Mitch, for the twentieth time!" Ember shouted, drowning out whatever Sky had started to say.

"Really? Herobrine said you brought him back to life. That would earn you muchas smooches, wouldn't you think?"

"Rose, you can kiss Mitch all you want. I really don't care."

"Can I kiss Ty? I want to kiss Ty."

"No, you can't kiss Ty!"

"What's the difference?" Rose asked innocently.

"Ty doesn't like being kissed by you!"

"He just plays hard to get." She turned confidently towards Ty, and he fought the impulse to run. He would never, ever subject himself to the misery of being kissed by her again. "Hey, bitsy pookums! Come over here, babe!"

Ember snarled. "Stop it. Now." Her voice was a shard of ice, low and dangerous, and it sent a nervous thrill up Ty's spine. This sounded like it was going to get ugly.

"Geez, who's stepping on your tail? I just want to mess with him."

"Too bad. You need to leave Ty alone."

"Why?"

"Because I—" Ember bit her lip. A possibility occurred to him. Could Ember… like him? Somehow, this was an interesting thought. "Because you'll distract him."

Oh, nope. She didn't like him, and that was perfectly fine. That was good. Why the Nether would he want her to like him? Ty had enough to think about, like the fact that his closest friends were either about to be turned into dragons or were back from the dead.

"Yeah, right. It's because you lurve Ty. Well, I saw him first, sista. He is mine."

"Rose, I do not have a crush on Ty. Accept it."

"Okay, you don't have a crush on him, you have the hots for him."

"I will rip out your liver," Ember threatened.

"Aww, you know you love me. And he's still mine." Rose turned to Ty and grinned. "Ain't that the truth, sugar?"

"No," he managed to squeak. She just laughed.

Ty turned back to Sky, whose face had faded to an ashen grey. "H-Herobrine."

"Hello, Adam." The god chuckled, and Ty whipped around to stare into his white eyes. "I have quite a surprise for you."

* * *

><p><strong>I think I'll leave you there. And not update for a week. No, seriously, I can't update for a week. Y'all can handle it.<strong>

**Also... I am starting a new short story, in which I must incorporate dares from the readers of my other stories. So far, thanks to ArcticHuntress, one character will believe he/she is a marshmallow, and some characters will be kidnapped by fangirls. Dare me for a Youtuber Minecraft fanfic! I'll take about twenty dares (so, hypothetically, we could have Jason believe he is a marshmallow, Mitch... IDK, maybe have a mental breakdown and start eating marshmallows compulsively, and everyone else abducted by fangirls from Mars, with Jason and Mitch as their only hope to be saved). DARE ME, EVERYONE!**

**"U Stink But I Love U" by Mucky Pup.**


End file.
